A secret for a secret
by Violetscented
Summary: This is set right after season 3, a few days after Emma & Hook returned with Marian. Something is discovered in Gold's pawnshop & after a seemingly small accident, things start to go very wrong. Secrets are revealed as lives become endangered. Once again it is up to Emma & Regina to save Storybrooke. Eventual SwanQueen and rated M for later chapters. (I don't own the characters.)
1. Chapter 1

Gold came walking into the room and found Belle dusting some of the objects in the shop. Again. This time she had opened a big cabinet in the back and was carefully taking out every object inside it and cleaning them with a rag that smelled faintly of lavender.

Gold shook his head slightly at the sight before asking: "Do you ever stop cleaning, Belle?"

She turned around to face him and smiled that slightly mothering smile that was reserved just for him. "Yes, I do actually! But not when things are this dusty. There are so many strange things in here and every single one seems to be a world champion in gathering dust! It's worse than when I reopened the library!"

Gold walked over to her and peered into the cabinet. "Yes, I can see that. Well these particular objects are very old. This is where I keep the more obscure objects that I decided to bring from the Enchanted Forest in case of emergencies. There are some lesser protection charms and a few old potions that I have collected from other magic wielders."

He looked at the object that Belle had in her hand. It was a small glass vial in the shape of a tear drop attached to a blackened silver necklace. In the vial was a light blue liquid. Gold had never noticed just how blue the liquid was as the vial had always been covered in dust. But now he could see it catching the light from a nearby lamp. He gingerly took the vial from Belle and held it up to the light.

Belle looked at it with a furrowed brow. "What is it?"

Gold stared at the vial for a second as if trying to place it. "Oh yes, I remember what it is supposed to do. I say supposed to because I have never seen it in action. It's meant to reveal secrets. I traded a batch of memory loss potions for it from a wandering witch that I met a very long time ago. I thought it was a good deal then but I have never used it because of its price."

Belle looked at the vial and then back at Gold. "Ok, I'll bite. What's its price?"

Gold smiled a wry little smile before replying. "Well, all magic comes with a price as we all know, but this one is quite straight forward and direct. It works a bit like the candle that Mary Margaret used against Cora. But instead of a life for a life, it's a secret for a secret. The liquid will help unearth a secret. But it requires a secret to be revealed in payment. And it has to be a big secret. I never thought it was worth it. If I wanted to know someones secrets I could usually use a truth potion or simply trick people to open up somehow."

With that Gold handed the vial back to Belle by the silver chain. Just as she was going to take it, the front door of the shop banged open violently. Grumpy had just thrown the door opened in a fit of rage while shouting about Gold stealing a missing jug. This had made a large and ancient-looking porcelain doll by the door fall over and smash loudly. Belle didn't know if it was the shock of Grumpy's entrance or the noise from the porcelain breaking but whichever it was, it made her fumble the chain as Gold gave it to her. The vial fell to the floor and broke in two. It didn't smash like the porcelain doll but instead just cracked in two halves, two perfect halves of the tear drop vial lying next to each other on the floor.

The liquid inside it leaked out quickly and seeped into the floorboards underneath. Belle covered her mouth with her hand and made a slight whimpering noise before looking at Gold. Ignoring the shouting Grumpy, Gold looked back at Belle with an instant flash of anger in his eyes. When he saw her distraught face, however, the anger quickly seemed to leave his features and he gave her a weak smile.

"As I said, I never thought that potion would be worth using. There are better ways to find out secrets," he said with warmth in his voice.

He kissed Belle's cheek affectionately and walked over to Grumpy to try and resolve the apparent problem. Belle looked down on the broken vial and bit her lip. She took the pieces to the bin and then started cleaning up the porcelain pieces of the doll while cursing her clumsiness. It wasn't long until she had put the vial and its lost blue liquid out of her mind.


	2. Chapter 2

It was later that same afternoon when the door to Gold's pawnshop opened again. This time it was opened quite normally by the town's sheriff and local savior.

Belle looked up and greeted Emma Swan with a smile. "Hi Emma. How are you?"

Emma smiled back at her warmly and wondered if she should hug her hello. Belle was definitely the hugging type, but then they had seen each other just yesterday. Emma decided against it, Gold always looked at her funny when she hugged Belle, like he was trying to ascertain her intentions. She didn't know why. He never peered so closely at Mary Margaret or even Ruby when they hugged Belle.

"Hey Belle. I'm good. I'm actually here on official business. Grumpy has filed a complaint about Gold. Something about a missing jug? I should probably talk to him about it," she said in a calm voice.

Belle smiled knowingly. "Right, yeah. I'll go fetch him for you."

Emma thanked her and while she waited for Belle to return with Gold, she looked around. She always did when she was in the pawnshop. There were so many things in there that at first glance looked like ordinary, if tatty, old ornaments but turned out to be important magical artefacts or special keepsakes from the pasts of the people in Storybrooke. Everything from glass slippers to actual magic wands could be found in here.

Emma walked over to the old cabinet in the back. In all the commotion during Grumpy's arrival, Belle had forgotten to close it. As Emma stood in front of it, having a casual glance at its contents, she missed the blue liquid that flowed out of the floorboards beneath her to form a tiny puddle around her shoe. As Emma inspected a small jade figurine, trying to figure out what animal it was meant to be, the puddle was soaked up by Emma's brown boot. However, she couldn't miss noticing when the liquid had moved through the leather of her boot and soaked her sock.

She looked down with her forehead creased, trying in vain to figure out why her sock felt wet. But as soon as she had done that the liquid was absorbed by the skin on her foot and her sock felt fine again. "That's weird." She muttered to herself. "Everything in this damn town is weird." She was about to take her shoe off to check her sock when she heard Gold clearing his throat behind her.

"See anything you like, Ms Swan? Most things in here can be purchased, you know. For the right price of course."

Emma looked at him and raised her eyebrows before replying: "Yeah, the right price. Like a firstborn child or the thing you hold most dear. I'm starting to know the rules of your games by now."

Gold made a face that was supposed to portray him being hurt but a smug smile shone through it. Emma wasn't in the mood for sarcastic banter so she decided to just get on with this pointless interview. Anything to get home to Henry and her parents. Maybe David or Mary Margaret knew something about magically wet socks that dried instantly.


	3. Chapter 3

When the interview with Gold was concluded Emma returned to the sheriff's office. David was there waiting for her, it was his turn to do the night shift.

He looked up from the desk as she entered the room and greeted his daughter. "Hey there. How did it go?"

Emma sighed deeply. "Dead end. Gold denies ever seeing this jug that Grumpy is going on about. I did a sweep of the shop with Belle and we couldn't find anything matching the description of the damn thing. We don't have any evidence against Gold or even any proof that the jug was stolen in the first place. So for now I suppose we have to put it on the back-burner and hope that one of the dwarves find the damn thing gathering dust on a window sill or something."

Her father nodded and grabbed Emma's red leatherjacket from the chair behind him. He threw it at her in a playful way and told her to go home and have some dinner. "Hug your mother and the baby from me and tell 'em I'll be home as soon as I can."

Emma smiled at him mock-reproachfully. "You shouldn't throw things. You could hurt someone. Make sure you order some food from Granny's and don't work too hard!"

David laughed before replying: "Will do, Sheriff!"

Emma walked out while putting her jacket on. Driving back to Mary Margaret's flat she realized that she hadn't asked David about the sock thing. But just then her phone rang and she forgot all about it. She pulled over and answered her cell phone. It was Henry.

"Hi! Do you mind if I go mom's for dinner tonight? She just called to talk to me and she sounded real upset. You know, about Robin Hood and all that. I think I can make her feel a bit better if I have dinner with her and stay there tonight. So she doesn't have to be alone, you know?"

Emma shook her head slightly to herself while wondering how she could have such a mature and caring son. Then she remembered that most of that must be from how Regina raised him. It was still surprising to her that such an imposing and sometimes downright dangerous woman could raise a child to be so loving, generous and sweet. But then there had been moments when Emma had seen glimpses of those sides in Regina herself.

Mary Margaret had often used those very words to describe to Emma what Regina was like when she first met her as well. Emma wondered if that is what Regina would be like all the time if she hadn't had such a troubled life.

"Hello? Are you still there?"

Henry's voice on the line sounded confused and it woke Emma from her thoughts. "Oh yeah, sorry kid! Yeah, I'm still here. I think that's a great idea. If there is anything that can make her feel a bit better, it's you. I'll pick you up after school tomorrow."

Henry sounded excited as he replied: "Great! This will be like having a new mission. Operation penguin or... um… platypus maybe?"

Emma looked confused. "Penguin or platypus?!"

Henry sounded even more excited now. "Yeah, you know... an animal that cheers people up! Like, maybe some kind of weird looking toad or gross bug?!"

Emma grinned into her phone. Henry might be a mature young boy, but he was definitely still a young boy. "No, kid. I think you were better off with a penguin or a platypus. Stay away from the gross. Anyway, I'm coming home now so I'll see you before you go. Call your mom and tell her you can stay over. Oh and don't forget to pack your Nintendo this time. I'm not coming over with it again."

With a grudging tone Henry promised to double check he had everything this time. They hung up and Emma continued the drive home.


	4. Chapter 4

Regina rang the doorbell about fifteen minutes after Emma had arrived home. Emma was standing by the oven to inspect what Mary Margaret was cooking and Henry was putting the last of his things in his overnight bag. Mary Margaret looked at Emma with worry in her eyes. Emma shrugged at her as to indicate that she would have to face Regina sooner or later.

She walked over to open the door for Regina while shouting to Henry to hurry up. When the door was opened she saw that Regina was wearing that tight, grey dress she had worn the first time Emma met her. Her black coat was draped over her crossed arms and she was intentionally avoiding looking at Emma. Emma clenched her jaw and prepared for an awful encounter.

With a voice trying to sound friendly but still somehow respectfully somber, she croaked out: "Hi Regina. Henry is just finishing up. Come in. Want something to drink while you wait?"

The brunette stared straight ahead and growled: "What do you think?". Emma took a step back and mumbled: "Right. Nothing to drink." Regina rushed past her into the room to check if Henry was ready.

Mary Margaret left the food on the oven and slowly approached Regina the way you see zookeepers approach irate tigers in a zoo. "Are you ok?", she asked in a hushed voice.

Regina stared at her as if she was a creature from outer space. "Ok? Ok? Am I ok? Little Miss-helps-a-lot over there just brought back the dead wife of the man I've finally managed to fall in love with. After all this time I finally dared to let someone into my heart again and then your idiotic daughter ruins it all by trying to be NICE! She really is like you, isn't she?! Heavens save me from the Charming family being nice!"

The room fell deadly silent. Mary Margaret bit her lip and then started to say something about good intentions but it was drowned out by Henry rushing into the kitchen dragging an overfilled bag across the floor.

Emma stared at it. "Kid, have you packed everything you own in that?", she asked with raised eyebrows.

Henry beamed at her before replying: "You said to make sure I didn't forget anything, so I just packed as much as I could. Problem solved! Hi mom!" With the last words he let go of the bag and fell into Regina's arms.

Regina bent over slightly to return the hug with vigour. That's when it happened. Emma did something she had found herself doing, against her will, quite a few times now, she found her gaze lingering at the brunettes derrière. The first time Emma had met Regina, in that exact grey dress she mused, she had thought that the mayor of Storybrooke was a knockout and that opinion hadn't changed.

Emma was usually attracted to men but she had experienced feelings of lust and attraction to women on a handful of occasions in her life. Most memorably a girl named Susanne who was at the same foster home as Emma. Emma had crushed hard on the one year younger girl just before she ran away. Susanne finally being adopted and leaving for her new home on the other side of the country had been one of the things that finally convinced Emma to run away. And then of course there was her time behind bars. Plenty of chances to fall for women there.

But this was different. This was Regina. No matter how sexy, interesting and delicious Regina was, she was still the woman who had done so many awful things to Emma's family and everyone around them. She was also the woman who hated Emma's guts most of the time.

In short, she was not someone that Emma should be staring at. In fact Emma made a point of trying not to objectify anyone who hadn't made it very clear that they wanted her to objectify them. So why couldn't she stop herself from staring at Regina's smile, hands, eyes, chest or like now - her perfectly shaped rear? She forced her eyes to turn up towards the ceiling.

Regina moved towards the door and Henry rushed over to hug his grandmother goodnight. Mary Margaret kissed him on the head and he smiled at her. Emma got the next hug and she took the chance to steal a kiss in Henry's ruffled hair as well. Henry rolled his eyes but smiled as he smoothed his hair down and walked over to Regina. Henry waived as he left, Regina didn't even say goodbye.

When the door had closed behind them Emma looked at her mother with a pained expression. "Mary Margaret? How do I make this right? I mean, I never meant for this to happen. She must see that, right?", she said with a slight groan.

Mary Margaret nodded before replying. "Yes. I think she does see that, deep down. She's just very hurt and wants to blame someone. I think Cora raised Regina to use blame as a knee-jerk reaction when something goes wrong. The answer for Cora was always envy, bitterness, blame and hate. So it makes sense that Regina resorts to that when things go wrong as well."

Emma rubbed her neck in an exasperated way before replying: "You're right. I need to give her time to calm down and then try to apologize again. I can't take Marian back to the Enchanted Forest so I don't see how I can do anything else but apologize."

Mary Margaret patted her arm softly and went back to the food on the oven. Emma stared into space and tried to figure out what she could possibly say when she apologized. She wished she knew how Regina's mind worked. If she knew better how Regina would react and feel, she could say the right things to make this better.

She had to make this right. Both for Henry's sake, for her own peace of minds sake and for the sake of the town. Few things were more dangerous to Storybrooke than Regina on the warpath. There was something else as well. Emma hated the idea of Regina being angry at her. She hated hurting Regina. Everyone else always seemed to hurt Regina Mills one way or another and Emma hated the idea that she was now part of that.

As she thought of Regina she unconsciously bent down and scratched her foot through her boot. She hadn't actually realized that the strange tingling and itching she was experiencing there had only appeared when she was thinking about Regina and how to get into the older woman's head.


	5. Chapter 5

That night Emma had a very vivid dream. She dreamed of a lush and nicely decorated bedroom with a meticulously made bed in the middle and a vanity table by the window. On the vanity table stood an ornate mirror and in that she could see the reflection of a woman.

The woman was putting an earring on with both her hands and struggling ever so slightly. She smiled at Emma when she noticed she was watching her. It was a smile from a lover, a smile from someone who knew Emma closely and was comfortable around her. It was a smile of pure happiness and safety with a little evocative sexiness thrown in for good measure.

The woman seated on the chair by the vanity table spoke: "Hey honey, this earring won't close. Would you mind assisting me?"

With the logic of dreams, Emma only then noticed that the woman was wearing nothing but a diamond necklace, a black bra, black panties and a suspender belt with attached black stockings covering her perfectly shaped legs. The lingerie had lace edges but it was still tasteful and not in any way cheap-looking. The woman in front of her looked more like she was accustomed to wearing lingerie to fit nicely under her dress than that she was trying to arouse someone. But whether or not that was the effect desired, Emma felt that tell-tale tingling between her legs. That tingling which meant she was about to get wet very, very soon.

The woman had gotten up and walked towards Emma. She was still smiling. The slight scar over her upper lip working as an accent to show the perfection of the lips below it. Regina, yes of course it was Regina, handed Emma the earring and then inclined her head a little to the left while pulling her hair back to reveal her ear.

Emma noticed that her dream-self wasn't surprised at this situation. Her hands weren't even shaking as she attached the earring to a soft earlobe and then reached in to gently kiss the outer rim of the ear from lobe to top. Regina rewarded her with an amused little smile and gently pushed Emma away from her.

"We don't have time for that, dear. We are about to be quite late.", Regina said with mock severity. Her eyes mirroring the easy smile still placed on her lips.

In the dream, this all seemed like an everyday occurrence. It seemed obvious that they were going to a dinner party and they were getting ready. They were both wearing flawless make-up already and their hair looked just right. Dream-Emma looked down and saw that she was wearing a long silk light blue dress. Where had she seen that perfectly clear, light blue colour before? Had she even seen it before? She didn't think so? Why was it familiar then? It somehow seemed important in the dream. But then Emma became distracted as she heard the sound of Regina opening a wardrobe door.

Regina stared at a line of dresses and suits. They were all black, which seemed natural to Emma. Regina picked out a tight black dress which Emma knew would end just above Regina's knees. This dress would hug every curve exquisitely. Emma felt her dream-self smirk knowingly. Regina looked at her with an admonishing look.

"Are you going to stand there drooling like a schoolboy all day or are you going to help speed up the process here? Get me that bottle of La Petite Robe Noire from the table. Then I need to get in this dress and you need to go get yourself some shoes."

Emma picked up the bottle of Regina's favourite perfume and took it over to the brunette. She moved Regina's hair away from her ears and then sprayed a singly spray at each pulse point on Regina's neck. Then one spray between the older woman's breasts, knowing that some of the perfume would stick to the bra and last longer than it did on her skin. Regina abruptly took the bottle and sprayed a spray on each of her wrists and then indicated the spray to Emma.

"I might as well spray this on you as well considering we always end up smelling the same after a while. Why is that, Ms Swan?", she almost whispered in a low voice while smiling meaningfully at Emma.

Emma consented grinningly and got the same treatment that she had just given to Regina. She felt the cold perfume land on her heated skin and turned her face to see the look on Regina's face as she watched the liquid spread on the blonde's skin. The slightly tart scent of black cherries filled her nostrils and was soon joined by the sweetness of red apples. No wonder Regina wore this perfume.

Perfume done, Regina now efficiently moved on to putting her black dress on. Dream-Emma watched, baffled by the beauty and charm of the creature in front of her. The dress was now in place and Regina was just reaching back for the zip when Emma smacked her hand away. She was given a dangerous look from Regina and immediately knew that the slap was too hard. But for some reason this seemed like acceptable collateral damage in the dream. Emma faced the angry look from her lover with the confidence of someone who knows they can get away with anything.

She smiled at Regina and said in a suggestive voice: "Sorry, but you know that is my job." Regina looked sceptically at her with a raised eyebrow but she let the issue drop and turned her head back to facing forwards.

In the dream Emma grabbed the zip confidently and slowly started sliding it up the beautiful back of the mayor of Storybrooke. She marveled at the look of Regina's skin. Ever so slightly darker than her own and always perfectly cared for and maintained. She thought about the end of the night when she was planning to just this, but in the reverse order. She couldn't wait to slide that zip back down again.

With dream logic the scene changed. They were walking down some stairs now. Steep stairs that never seemed to end. Dream-Emma made an annoyed note to remind herself to take down the oil painting of Grumpy posing naked with only a jug covering his nether regions. She couldn't remember why they had that commissioned in the first place.

The dream switched again. They were eating dinner and Emma noticed that they were having roasted swan. She wondered if she should be flattered that they were serving this in her honour or if she should be slightly turned on at the idea of Regina eating swan. But instead of both these lovely emotions she felt only dread. It felt wrong and somehow threatening that swan was being served. It felt like a warning.

Luckily the feeling of dread subsided into something much nicer as she felt a stocking-clad foot slide under her long blue dress and up her leg. Regina was sitting opposite her and must have kicked off her high-heeled shoes to get a chance to touch Emma without anyone knowing.

She looked at Regina who was sitting there perfectly calm and listening to the blonde man, whom Emma was pretty sure her subconscious had just made up, while nodding politely. But Emma knew her better. That polite nod conveyed boredom and she knew that the brunette would cut him off soon if his conversation didn't start to interest her.

Dream-Emma pretended to drop her fork so she could go under the table and see Regina's extended leg and her foot placed firmly on Emma's knee. She took the chance to caress up Regina's leg to her thigh and she could have sworn that she heard a sharp intake of breath somewhere up there above the table cloth.

Annoyingly, the dream changed again. They were standing next to each other by a fireplace now. Emma could hear the chatter and glass clinking of the other guests behind them. She leaned close to Regina and whispered into the ear which bore the earring she had attached earlier:

"Everything about you is pleasurable. Even pouring you that glass of wine was pleasurable. Hearing you say "yes thank you" with a socially acceptable smile and watching you hold out the empty glass towards me. Then watching the red liquid fill the glass slowly. I saw it all in slow motion. I could smell the scent of you where I stood. Not just the perfume but the singular sensation of your natural scent mixing with the perfume. I could hear your breathing and the quiet tinkling of your fingers playing with the necklace at your neck. I could feel the warmth of your body. Every smell, every sensation, every vision... It was all intensified and enlarged. Every single one like a huge wave crashing over a beach. And time seemed to stand still. No one has ever made me feel anything like that. It scares me and enthralls me. Just like you do, my queen."

Emma felt the older woman shiver slightly as her breath caressed Regina's neck and then…. And then Emma woke up to hear David scream: "No, not dragon snot! Anything but dragon snot!" in his sleep. She could hear her mother shush him lovingly and then silence fell in the little flat once more. Emma tried to go back to sleep. She tried to return to that dream. But it was futile. She was wide awake and she had a bad aching in her chest.

She had dreamed about Regina before. But then it had either been nightmares or wet dreams. This, well this was different. She wondered if it was her guilt over hurting Regina or something else causing these new emotions. But one thing she knew for certain was that the feelings of love, safety and joy she had felt when he was with Regina in that dream – if she could ever have a tenth of that in real life, she would be a very happy bunny.

She put her hand over her eyes and wondered if there was the slightest chance of getting any more sleep tonight.


	6. Chapter 6

It was 8.30 in the morning and the mayor's office smelled of the ridiculously large mug of black coffee that stood on the desk. Regina put the dossier on planning permissions back on the shelf on the wall next to her.

Now that the people of Storybrooke knew how she had treated them all in the Enchanted Forest all those years ago, they seemed to have a competition about who could make the strangest requests. It wasn't just planning permissions, she would get anonymous calls about the state of the streets almost daily now. Well, as anonymous as they could be considering that Regina recognized Granny's voice very well despite the fake Irish accent the woman thought was concealing her identity.

Regina was just thinking that she needed to get an assistant or at least a town council to help with some of this, the only problem being that Regina hated working with others and preferred to just magic any problems away, when she felt something odd.

Gold had taught her, back when he was the good old insane Rumplestiltskin, to sense when powerful magic was being created. She could feel something now. It wasn't the feeling of a person casting a serious spell or a large curse (thank goodness). But there was something.

She closed her eyes and concentrated. She could smell the coffee in front of her, she could feel the lingering annoyance with the townspeople in her stomach, she could hear the noise from the street outside and… yes, there it was. It felt almost like a faint electric charge in the air.

Regina instantly picked up her cellphone and rang Gold. He replied within a second, making Regina sure that he had felt something too.

She spared him the niceties as usual and just asked: "Can you feel magic in the air?"

"Did you call me to spout love song titles at me or are you flirting with me, mayor Mills?" Said Gold in a toneless voice.

"Oh stop being an idiot. You know very well what I mean. Something is happening. It feels… it feels almost like electricity. Are you doing anything magical that could be causing this?"

"I'm glad to hear that this wasn't your way of trying to make me your rebound after dear Robin Hood went back to his wife.", Gold said and paused.

Regina gritted her teeth and felt a bad sting in her chest. Although it felt more like hurt pride than an aching heart if she was honest with herself.

Gold continued: "But yes, there is something magical occurring. It hasn't just started though. I have felt it since yesterday afternoon. However, it certainly does feel stronger today. I thought you were cooking up some form of potion or spell that was causing it."

"No, if I was I wouldn't be ringing you, would I?" Regina replied with a terse voice.

"Now now, Regina. Mind that temper of yours. You have to admit that it wasn't such a far-fetched guess. I assumed you'd be busy making love potions to get Robin back or practicing vanishing spells to get rid of his lovely maid Marian."

Regina huffed and rolled her eyes. "Contrary to what people think, I don't use magic to get or to keep lovers. I don't need to."

Gold chuckled before replying: "Really? I think dear old Graham would disagree?"

Regina could feel the vein in her forehead throbbing now. "He wasn't really a lover. He was a minion and a play thing. That was about power, not emotions or real lust. Anyway, why am I explaining this to you? Stop changing the subject! Do you know anything about this magic or not?"

Gold smiled to himself before replying to her. After all this time he did still enjoy manipulating the so called Evil Queen's mood. "No. If it's not you nor me I think we are left with two options."

Regina waited for all of a millisecond before her impatience kicked in. She really should have finished that coffee before ringing this annoying man. "So, who?", she snarled.

"Why the blue fairy and her band of merry nuns of course. Secondly there is…" Gold trailed off.

Regina covered her eyes with her hand in frustration before replying: "Oh for gods sake, stop stringing me along, Gold. WHO?"

"Your beautiful little arch nemesis, of course. Our resident saviour and sheriff. She's got her own special brand of magic thanks to your tender teachings, hasn't she?" Gold almost managed to control his smirk. This was just too easy to resist, even though he had promised Belle to be good.

"Right. I'll look into it as you are clearly too busy with being an ass." With that Regina hung up.

Gold was left staring at his phone and mumbling "Somehow, I don't think she meant a donkey" to himself with a satisfied grin.


	7. Chapter 7

**Note:** Thanks to everyone who is following and favouriting my story! I haven't written any fanfic in years and this is my first time writing OUAT so any encouragement is worth its weight in gold to me. I know the romance is a bit on the slow-burning side so thank you for your patience. It will be rewarded very soon. I'd also like to thank you for ignoring any grammar-/language errors I make as English is my second language.

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><p>Emma stood outside the door to the mayor's office. Her hand was resting on the door handle. It was ridiculous of her to be frightened about going in. She was Emma Swan for god's sake! She had chased actual criminals and even BEEN a criminal herself once upon a time. This plus her dealings with dragons, witches, wraiths, shadows and even flying monkeys showed that she was no frightened little schoolgirl. She didn't fear Regina Mills. Plenty of people were afraid of Regina but they were afraid of her because they had known her as the evil queen and feared imprisonment, starvation, torture or death. A few people just knew Regina the mayor and basically just feared raised taxes.<p>

Emma wasn't in either those groups. Emma was one of the few people who had seen the change that had brought Regina from being the evil queen to being the woman she now happily shared a son with. She had seen how Henry's love and trust, and maybe the slack that she and her parents had given Regina, had changed the brown-eyed beauty from dangerous to merely bitchy. No, she didn't fear Regina in that way. What she feared was a lot more mundane. She feared walking into that office to see a superior smirk on Regina's face, showing that the older woman had somehow seen into her dreams.

It was stupid. Regina couldn't know that Emma desired her and she certainly couldn't know that last night's dream had indicated something deeper under the desire. This wouldn't even be on Regina's radar anyway. Regina was from the Enchanted Forest. A place where love was between men and women and followed the fairy tale format. And even if Regina wanted to break free from that format, she had never shown any signs of homosexuality.

She was straight as an arrow with male love interests popping up everywhere. Daniel, Leopold, Graham and now Robin. A mischievous little voice in Emma's head pointed out that for one reason or another, those relationships had never worked out. Why was that? Bad luck? Karma? Or something else?

Emma could feel her foot feeling strange and tingly again and bent down to scratch at it. Just then the door opened. Regina was wearing black suit trousers, a black waist coat and a crisp white shirt which seemed to have an extra button unbuttoned. Emma stared up at her with her mouth slightly opened in shock.

Regina crossed her arms over her chest and looked at Emma with a frown. "Are you going to stand out here all day or are you actually coming in at some point?", Regina drawled sarcastically.

Emma wanted to kick herself. Of course Regina would know that she was there. How long had she been standing there? She scratched her foot which was tingling like crazy now.

She realized she had to reply. "Yeah, sorry. I just have this weird tingling and itching sensation on my foot. I've had it since yesterday afternoon."

Regina raised an eyebrow and said: "Sounds like something you might want to ask doctor Whale about. I hope it's not some strange form of syphilis. You have been hanging around with a mangy pirate after all."

Emma stood up and replied with an affronted tone: "He's not mangy! I mean he's many things but not that. I think. Well, anyway, I haven't seen him since we… well since we came back. He's been calling me a lot but I've kinda been avoiding him. He seems to be racing ahead in a direction that I'm not really ready for." Emma trailed off. Why was she telling Regina this?

Regina's eyes flared with anger and for a moment she looked like she was going to strike her visitor.

"Oh boo hoo! I'm sorry if I don't offer up enough pity for your relationship speeding up as mine seems to have stopped dead in its tracks. Sorry, I should have said as YOU stopped it dead in its tracks.", Regina snapped and sat down behind her desk.

Emma walked over to the desk and put her hands in her back pockets as she looked down at the floor. Her voice sounded cautious when she spoke.

"Yeah, about that. I'm so sorry that my actions hurt you. The last thing I want to do is deny you your happy ending, you know that. You've gone through so much crap and I truly believe you have earned the right to get some happiness.", Emma said and took her right hand out of her pocket to pull a blonde lock of hair away from her face and behind her ear.

Regina was looking at Emma with a pained expression but as she hadn't stopped her yet, Emma quickly continued: "I mean to be honest, I think you are the only person here who understands how hard it can be to love after you have been so badly burnt. Both you and I have had our hearts stamped on again and again and I know how hard it is to let someone new in after that. So I'm so sorry that when you finally braved letting Robin in and let yourself try to love again, it didn't work out. But most of all I am sorry that I had a hand in that. I really want you to be happy, Regina. Please believe that."

Regina opened her mouth to say something but then she closed it again. She stared at Emma intensely, who all of a sudden felt the ridiculous and vain urge to have paid more attention to her looks this morning. Regina started to speak again and Emma noticed that her face had once again switched back to the implacable mask of the controlled and untouchable mayor of Storybrooke.

"Be that as it may, I'm not very happy at the moment. But then villains aren't supposed to be happy, remember? Now if you don't mind I would like to discuss what I called you here for. ", Regina said in an icy business-like voice.

Emma sighed painfully. That didn't go as she wanted. Did she even manage to reach Regina? Damn. She would have to try again later. There was no stopping Regina when she had changed the subject.

Emma sat down on the chair opposite the mayor's desk. Since the room was warm she took her red leather jacket and her gloves off and hung the jacket on the back of her chair with the gloves in the pockets.

Then she looked at the mayor with a defeated face and spoke: "Sure, go right ahead. What can I help you with, madam mayor?"

Regina glared at her as if she was trying to decide whether or not Emma was being insolent in some way. But she replied all the same.

"I don't know if your magical powers are developed enough to notice these things, but there has been some unknown magic used in Storybrooke. I have spoken to Gold about it and it was neither him nor me. I also contacted the blue fairy and she assured me that it was neither her nor one of the other fairies."

Regina looked intently at Emma to ensure that she was following. Emma's blue-green eyes looked alert and interested so Regina continued:

"This leaves us with two possibilities. The magic was either performed by you or by some outside power. Considering our bad experiences with outsiders using magic I want to eliminate the last possibility. So, have you used any magic lately? It could be a potion or a spell or just you practising perhaps?"

Emma, who was glad this this new development had taken her mind off her guilt over hurting Regina and her guilt over the inappropriate dream last night, quickly shook her head. "No, I haven't practised any magic since I kissed… well revived… Hook. Zelena took my magic, remember?", Emma said confused.

Regina's brow furrowed. "Oh yes. Of course, I had forgotten about that. Well now that Zelena is gone all her spells will be undone so you should have your magic back now."

Emma wondered why Regina looked so troubled right now. Was it something she said? About losing her magic? Or was it that she felt jealous that Emma had kissed Hook while she couldn't kiss her Robin? Then she felt her foot tingle like mad, this was getting unbearable. She felt like she was being tickled frenetically from the inside of her foot. The muscles in her foot and up her ankle were in spasms.

She couldn't stand it anymore and started undoing the laces of her boots to check her foot. She tore the boot off and then her black sock but her foot looked the same. The creamy white skin was as far as she could tell unblemished.

Meanwhile Regina had gotten up and walked around the desk. Emma couldn't believe her eyes when she saw Regina crouch down by her feet and pick up Emma's naked foot to examine it. This felt really odd. Emma hadn't expected any sympathy nor help from Regina right now. Especially not when it came to something as silly as a weird feeling in her foot.

Emma was glad that she took such good care of her feet that she wasn't embarrassed to show them in public. Considering that the most beautiful creature Emma had ever seen was now holding her foot and looking at it closely, she would hate to have to worry that her foot looked unappealing. Regina gently ran her hand over the sides of Emma's foot and then down over the sole.

So many thoughts were racing through Emma's brain. Should she say it was nothing to she could end this intimate and now slightly embarrassing situation? Or should she drag it out so she could keep Regina sitting there, kneeling so close to her and touching her ever so softly?

Luckily she didn't have to make a decision as Regina now had finished her inspection and spoke. "I can't see anything on your foot. Other than signs of a good pedicure, which I am glad to see, I find people usually don't look after themselves enough and I am glad to see that you are an exception to that."

Regina cleared her throat and stood up. She then matter-of-factly suggested that Emma should contact doctor Whale about it if it didn't feel better soon. Emma nodded and quickly replaced her sock and boot. It was probably her imagination but she felt like Regina was staring at her leg as she laced the long boot all the way up her lower leg.

Emma felt uncomfortable now. She felt way too vulnerable and so she followed her gut reaction to run away that kicked in whenever the protective shell of Emma Swan was being weakened. She tried to give Regina a polite and unfazed smile as she gathered up her jacket and gloves and stood up.

"Right. So now you know it wasn't me using magic. I'll try to dig around and see if I can find out what it was you and Gold were sensing and I'll report back to you if I find anything. Sound okay?", Emma managed to say and sound somewhat in control.

Regina inclined her head in an agreeing way as she sat back down behind the desk. "Yes, that sounds like a good idea. I'll use magic to see if I can sense anything else as well. I'll call you if I get any results, sheriff."

Emma nodded and left.


	8. Chapter 8

Emma closed the door behind her and started walking down the hall. She could hear her boots hitting the floor hard with each heavy step. She realized she was feeling irritated as well as confused. If Regina really hated her so much then why had she just crouched down to look at her foot like that? It's not like she was doing it because it was her duty. Feet weren't under the mayor's jurisdiction. This time it couldn't be explained away by saying she was doing it because helping Emma would be helping Henry either. Henry would be fine with a birth mum with a tingly foot. Regina must feel something more than hate and disdain for her. Pity isn't Regina's thing, neither is forgiveness. This made no sense.

Before she had even had time to realize that she had made a decision, she turned around and headed back to Regina's office. She flung the door open and was just going to ask Regina what was really going on here when she noticed something that completely shocked her. The woman sitting by the desk had tears in her eyes and was holding her arms around herself for comfort.

But now she stared up at Emma with almost as much panic as anger. When Emma saw that look she knew this was a mistake, Regina hated others seeing her being weak or vulnerable. Emma knew this simply because she usually felt the same way, although her reactions were never as violent as Regina's were.

Before Emma had time to decide what to do, Regina was on her feet and storming towards the confused blonde. Regina pushed Emma up against the wall, her hands gripping Emma's shoulders hard and keeping her in place.

Regina stood so close that Emma could faintly smell coffee on her breathe over her perfume. Regina growled menacingly: "You! What are you doing here? Come back for round two?"

"Round two? What the hell do you mean? Get your hands off me and we can talk about this like adults!" Emma said sharply.

"You know what I mean. Hurting me! Toying with me!", continued Regina in her low, dangerous growl.

Emma was just managing to keep herself from shouting as she replied. "No, I sure as hell don't know what you mean. I came back to clear the air and to make sure that you gave me a chance to finish my apology this time. I came back to try and make things right between us!"

For a brief moment Emma could see a deeply confused look in the chocolate brown eyes meeting hers. The tight grip on her shoulders loosened slightly and Regina took a small step back.

"Ok, let's say I believe you. How could you possibly make things right?", Regina asked in a quiet and calmer voice. But her eyes still showed animosity.

Emma shrugged which made Regina realize that her hands were still on Emma's shoulders. She removed them while Emma answered her question.

"I don't know. But I know I have to talk to you to be able to do it. And I know that you have to be brave and trust me a little bit here. Trust that I have good intentions. That I want you to be happy."

Regina looked at her for a long time before saying anything.

"You mean I have to be brave again? Sadly that isn't so easy right now.",she almost whispered in a deflated tone of voice.

Emma pulled her hand through her hair and made a pained face while she said: "I know, because you were brave with Robin and I ruined that…"

"No. No, because it only took a little courage to let Robin in. Because he could never mean that much to me. I know he is meant to. Tinkerbell showed me that he would be my true love. But I never really felt it. I felt something: friendship, respect and maybe some affection. But to be brave with you… that would take more courage than I have." Regina stopped there and was looking at the wall next to Emma. Her head was held proudly high but her entire frame looked anxiously tense.

Emma was feeling dizzy. Partly because her head was swimming with trying to figure out if Regina was actually hinting at what Emma thought she was. But also because the tingling in her foot was now excruciatingly painful. It had gone from tingling and itching to now feeling like the worst case of pins and needles anyone could imagine.

Maybe it was these distractions that kept Emma from just being quiet and seeing where this would lead. Maybe it was that which made her ignore caution and just ask the question that couldn't be taken back.

"Regina. Are you saying that you are attracted to me as well?" She said through gritted teeth, trying to ignore whatever was going on in her foot.

Regina's head snapped back in Emma's direction unbelievably fast. The chocolate brown eyes were staring wildly at Emma and she looked like she had just been slapped hard. She theatrically breathed out in a way that indicated that a denial was coming until she stopped dead in her tracks and resumed staring at Emma.

"You… what do you mean when you say 'me as well'?", She finally asked in a sceptical way.

Emma realised her mistake through the haze of her pain. Well, she had been worried that Regina had guessed at her attraction. Clearly she hadn't. She wondered if she could pretend that Regina had misheard her but she was in too much pain to do any acting. She wanted to lift her foot up and hold it to try and ease the pain but it felt worse when she moved so she just stood still.

Stalling for time she just said: "Huh? Sorry my foot is killing me!"

Regina didn't seem to care about the foot. She was still staring at Emma but her eyes seemed to be conveying a new set of emotions now. The confusion was still there but it was overshadowed by something else. Regina clenched her hands in to fists by her side, took a deep breath and then crossed the short distance between them and without any warning kissed Emma.

Emma could feel Regina first just pressing her lips hard against hers but then the lips started to relax and after a while they moved. All of a sudden she felt Regina's full lips softly fastening over her top lip, then her lower lip and then back to both lips pressing against Emma's again. She could even feel the tip of Regina's tongue softly but quickly brushing against her upper lip a few times.

As Emma was starting to kiss back, moving her own mouth to make the kiss deeper and more intimate with every second, she felt the pain in her foot subside. She now focused fully on the kiss and gently licked at Regina's lower lip until the lips parted and Emma could slide her tongue into the sweet and warm mouth of the woman she so desperately wanted. She groaned as her tongue moved slowly with Regina's.

Without thinking, Emma gripped Regina's waist and pulled her as close as she could without interrupting the ever deepening kiss. Then her hands slowly slid down to grab the brunette's hips. Emma was just wondering if she dared to let her hands move back to cup Regina's ass when Regina moved away from her face for a brief moment and whispered something inaudible.

"Sorry, what's that?", asked Emma in a breathy voice while tightening her grip on Regina's hips.

"I said thank you. I have been needing to do that for such a long time and I was sure I never would. So, thank you. Now I know what it would feel like and I can continue without always wondering." Regina said with finality. She moved away from Emma and smiled a sad smile.


	9. Chapter 9

Emma stared with incredulity at Regina. A moment ago she had been in the shorter woman's arms enjoying the best kiss Emma had ever had and now she was staring at a sad woman who seemed to be expecting her to leave.

"What the hell?", Emma sputtered.

Regina looked away and started to gracefully walk back to her desk. Her heels clicking on the floor with what felt to Emma like a hostile noise.

"I don't know quite what made me admit to what I said. Those words were meant to be left unspoken. I never expected to divulge that I was… attracted to you. Nor did I expect that you would be, at least to some degree, attracted to me as well.", Regina said while still not looking Emma in the eye. She sat down behind her desk once again.

Emma rushed over there and banged both her palms onto the desk. In an exasperated voice she said: "Well I never expected to tell you that I am really, really attracted to you either. Simply because I thought you…well… hated me and were quite old-fashioned in some ways. But now that we know that we both are attracted to each other and that we can kiss like that! Well, I see no reason why we shouldn't keep kissing!"

Regina couldn't hide a quick smirk. But then the controlled mask came over her face again and the protective walls of Regina Mills were back up.

"To me it's obvious that you and I aren't meant to be together. Firstly, you are right, I am old-fashioned in the sense that where I come from same sex relationships aren't recognized. Secondly, Tinkerbell used pixie dust and showed me my true love, it's Robin. Thirdly, and this is the most important one, what about Henry?", Regina said while looking Emma in the eye for the first time since the kiss.

Then she continued: "If you and I embarked on anything together we would be impacting his life. Any fights or arguments would hurt him. Any rumours and gossip would hurt him. And to be honest, I think he has had enough confusion in his life with his unconventional family situation without us making it worse." Regina sat back in her chair with the air of someone who has settled an argument with indisputable facts.

For a moment Emma just stared at her while standing there with her palms on the desk and her mouth ever so slightly opened. This was ludicrous!

"That is the worst bull I have heard in a long time. Leaving your first and second point for later, let's talk about Henry. This is a little premature considering all we are doing is kissing. But yeah, let's talk about Henry. Henry who never had two parents who loved each other as much as they loved him. Henry who wants nothing more than you and me to be happy AND to get along. Henry who could withstand all the gossip over having a mom who was the evil queen. Any problems we might have, we would work out together. Henry would be ecstatic if we were a family!", Emma almost shrieked in anger.

"Well, Henry isn't old enough to make these decisions. We are. Our first priority is to protect him.", Regina said with a calm voice. But Emma could see the older woman's hands fidgeting nervously with a pen on the desk.

Emma shook her head and answered in a low voice: "No. Our first priority is to love him, everything else follows from that. And love is just what you are afraid of right now, isn't it? That is why you are hiding behind Henry and Robin and our gender. You said it yourself, you don't have the courage to love me. Well, your secret is out now. Our secret is out. And you can't take it back."

Emma took a second to stare into Regina's eyes. Letting her see the hurt and the unshed tears there. Letting her know that this was real. Then she walked out, once again with heavy steps. Leaving the mayor sitting behind her desk with her own eyes filling with tears.


	10. Chapter 10

Nothing should be able to seep into marble floors like the light blue liquid had done as it left Emma's foot. But no one had told that to the magical potion which had been created over 110 years ago in another world. It had been created by a careful witch's hands and divided into three tear-shaped vials.

One the witch had used herself, one she let her daughter and apprentice have and the third one she had sold to a king whose village had paid the price of his inability to follow its simple rules. Whoever ingests the light blue potion through their skin will learn the secret they would most wish to know and then they will have to reveal a secret themselves.

This is the simple formula for the potion, a secret for a secret. The king found out his secret, he wanted to know who was plotting against his life to steal his throne. But when he found this out, and punished the miscreant, he forgot all about the potion and its price.

This was the biggest mistake of his life and it turned out to be the last mistake he was ever to make. The villagers who paid fealty to him all became very ill. First the ones close to the king and then it spread to the others. After a while the strange illness struck the king and finally took his life. With his death the potion dissolved. Magic always comes with a price.

The last remaining part of the potion was the one that had passed to the witch's daughter and it was one sunlit day in the woods to be bartered for some potions with a certain Rumpelstiltskin, after that it had waited patiently in his cabinet to be used.

It had now finally broken free of its glass vial that day in Gold's shop. It had found its way into the skin of someone, of this Emma Swan, in dire need of knowing a secret. The secret had been revealed, the potion had fulfilled its part of the bargain.

Now it travelled through the veins of the marble floors in the mayor's office, then down through the walls and out into the streets. All it had to do now was wait. Either it would get its payment or the people around Emma Swan would suffer until she paid the price. A secret for a secret. Or a secret for a life.

* * *

><p>Emma was in the bathroom of the sheriff's office. She was washing her face and dabbing at her red eyes with cold water. She was trying to figure out a plan but she was completely at a loss.<p>

Just this morning she was realizing that her dream had showed that her attraction to Regina was more than physical. She had realized that she might want Regina in her life. Then all of a sudden Regina had let her guard down like that and admitted to having hidden feelings for Emma. Why had she done that?

Then there was the kiss, god that kiss felt amazing. The being pushed away on the other hand was everything but amazing. Emma winced at her reflection in the mirror. This made no sense. But if there was something between her and Regina, Emma had to figure it out.

Regina had talked about Tinkerbell using pixie dust to show that Robin was Regina's true love. If Emma was going to reach Regina she would have to poke holes in her ridiculous reasons for refusing to let anything happen between them.

Starting with the man who was happily cooped up in the forest with his wife and son. It made Emma see red when she thought about how quickly Robin had dropped Regina like she was poisonous and then cowardly pretended like nothing had happened between them. Yeah, getting the true-love-with-Robin thing out of the way would have to be the first step.

Just as Emma had decided that she looked ok to head over to the convent and find Tinkerbell, her phone rang. The screen of her phone informed her that it was Hook calling. Great.

She winced again and answered it with a curt "Hi."

"Hello Swan. Long time no see. Have you been avoiding me by any chance?" Killian Hook's voice sounded casual but Emma assumed that was all fake. The pirate had been very open about his deepening feelings for her lately.

Emma scratched her forehead and tried to think of a way to deal with this delicately but firmly. "Um, yeah. Look, I meant to talk to you. I think I might have given you the wrong impression. I think I might have let you flirt with me and in some ways… well, responded to that as well. But to be honest with you, I have realised that its not a good idea."

There was silence on the line before Hook quietly cleared his throat and replied.

"Well I won't say I'm surprised. The fact that you have been avoiding me like the Black Death ever since we came back from our little trip through time made me think you had second thoughts." Hook's voice now showed the anger and hurt he felt.

"Honestly, Killian, I'm not sure I even had a first thought here. I was lonely and your attention was nice. After all the heartbreak with Neal, it was nice to have someone wanting me again. I realize how vain that sounds and I swear I never meant to hurt you! I supposed I felt that you, like me, knew how to protect yourself. I'm sorry."

"Yeah. Not as sorry as I am. I always suspected that this was a lost cause, I knew it would be always hard for you to trust someone again. And that if you did, it would have to be someone who really swept you off your feet from day one. Not someone like me."

He paused for a while and sighed wearily before continuing. "But I couldn't stop myself from falling for you. I suppose this is fate telling me that it's time to reap what I have sown. Villains don't get a happy ending."

Emma rolled her eyes and replied with an incredulous tone: "Oh come on Hook. Don't be like that. You'll find someone new. But yeah, treating women better will probably up your chances to find love again so please don't fall back into your bad habits. I truly am sorry, Killian. I'm sorry I couldn't return your feelings and I'm sorry if I wasted your time."

"No. Don't be. You taught me a lot, Swan. I'll keep that with me as I head out into the big, bad world. I won't pretend that I'm going to be a boy scout from now on, but yes, I will try to keep your voice in my head like a moral compass. For that I thank you, if for nothing else. Right, I'll leave you alone." At the last words Emma could hear his voice breaking slightly.

She felt horrible but at least now it was all out in the open. And this was Captain Hook after all, he'd be just fine as soon as he had licked his wounds.

She cleared her voice and answered him. "Thank you for understanding. I wish you all the best in the future and thank you for everything you have done for me and my family."

"Don't mention it. Goodbye Swan."

"Bye Killian."

The line went dead. Emma dragged her hand over her face. This day was officially sucking like hell now. Time to straighten her back, get out of this bathroom, grab something to eat and then head out to the convent to talk to Tinkerbell.

Emma quickly mused over the fact that she had just ended a flirtation with Captain Hook and was now on her way to speak to Tinkerbell about the ill-advised romance between Robin Hood and the Evil Queen. This was her life these days. You just couldn't make this shit up.


	11. Chapter 11

**Note:** Thank you once again to all those who have followed my story and a special thanks to those of you who have left a review. I was asked if Emma showing Regina that she was attracted to her as well didn't count as a payment to the potion. Sadly it won't be that easy and I will explain why in a later chapter. Please be patient and all will be revealed!

* * *

><p>With one hand on the wheel Emma took a big bite of her ham sandwich. She had picked up the sandwich and a cup of coffee from Granny's and she was now driving to the convent to see Tinkerbell. Just as she pulled up outside the convent she saw the blue fairy having a stern conversation with two other nuns outside the front door.<p>

Emma looked at them with a frown. She wouldn't admit this to anyone else but she never quite trusted the blue fairy. That woman only seemed to show up to save the day when she was bored. The rest of the time she appeared to ignore all of Storybrooke and spend her days scowling at the other nuns while they made candles.

Apparently she also micromanaged the colour-schemes of the fairies, including their toothbrushes. Or so Grumpy said. But then he also said that the blue fairy is addicted to sherry so Emma took that with a pinch of salt.

When Emma got out of the car the blue fairy and the nuns she had been telling off all came to meet her by the car.

"Hello there, dear." The blue fairy said. "How can we help you today?"

Emma put her fingers in the belt loops on the back of her jeans and smiled politely. "I'm here to see Tinkerbell. Unless she is busy today?"

"Not too busy to speak with the sheriff, I'm sure." Replied the blue fairy with a slightly worried look.

"Oh don't think she has done anything wrong. I...um... I just have a few questions for her. Nothing bad." Emma assured her with what she hoped was a carefree expression.

The blue fairy turned to one of the younger nuns with her and said: "Go fetch green. I mean Tinkerbell. "

About five minutes later Emma and Tinkerbell had decided to walk around the grounds to get some privacy while they spoke. It was chilly so Emma was glad she brought her gloves but wished she had remembered her woollen hat. Tinkerbell had a large pea-green coat with a hood and seemed nice and toasty in it.

Emma bit her lip as she considered how she could start this conversation. In the end she decided to just jump straight in.

"Can I ask you something about Regina?" She asked and tried to keep her voice neutral.

Tinkerbell gave her a searching look. "Regina? I thought you were here to talk to me about Hook?"

"What? No, he and I made a definite break to… well whatever it was that was happening between us. I'm here about Regina."

Tinkerbell looked down to the ground and smirked hugely. "Good choice, if you don't mind me saying so."

Emma first assumed that she meant ending the flirtation with Hook and thanked her. It wasn't until she started speaking again that a little voice in her head asked her if she was sure that Tinkerbell hadn't meant that in the choice between Hook and Regina, she had made the right choice. But she didn't dare to ask and just kept to what she had begun to say.

"When you helped search out Regina's second chance for true love. You did that in the Enchanted Forest, right?"

"Yes, I used pixie dust to lead us to the person that Regina could find true love with again. It led us to a tavern and a man with a lion tattoo on his arm. The same tattoo that Robin has", Tinkerbell replied with a little pride in her voice.

Emma couldn't keep the sarcasm out of her voice when she replied: "Well that sounds _very_ scientific. Firstly, what if that tattoo turned out to be very common? For example, all the merry men could have gotten the same tattoos in the same location to signify that they were brothers in arms or something."

Tinkerbell interrupted with alarm in her eyes: "But, but…The idea was that Regina was supposed to go in and meet him! Then she would have known it was him when she met him again. In fact she wouldn't have had to worry about meeting him again because I don't think she would have cast the curse if she had been happy with him."

Emma frowned. "Yeah, maybe. Anyway, my second point is that if you used the pixie dust in the Enchanted Forest it would only have had a certain pool of people to choose from, right? The pixie dust couldn't have led Regina to another realm or a person who hadn't been born yet? Or both?"

Now it was Tinkerbell's turn to frown. "That's true I suppose."

Emma continued: "So there might be a better candidate for Regina's true love in her life now?"

Tinkerbell looked at her. "You mean you? Sure, you might be someone Regina can find true love with and maybe you are a better choice than Robin. I mean, you're not married for example. And you know how to handle Regina and her… quirks"

Emma was going to ask Tinkerbell how she knew it was herself she meant but she realized that she had made that quite obvious.

She looked searchingly at the slight woman in the pea-green coat. "You mean you don't think it is a problem that I am a woman?"

"No, why would it be? I have seen trolls fall in love with ogres and kings fall in love with milk maids. Love can strike anywhere and it doesn't care what society thinks is appropriate. So neither do I. Anyway, I hear that relationships between people of the same gender is quite common in this world. Ruby down at the diner is always saying that you and Regina would make a great couple and no one bats an eyelid. Hasn't she mentioned that to you?"

Emma made a grimace. "No. No she hasn't. Has she mentioned this a lot? I mean do a lot of people talk about it?"

Tinkerbell looked out over the grounds. "No, I don't think so. I think the people around the two of you have wondered though. You both keep looking at each other, holding eye contact longer than you should. Even when we were all in Neverland I noticed it, as soon as you could you would both gaze passionately at each other."

Emma closed her eyes for a second and asked the question that she couldn't suppress. "Does she do that with Robin? I mean, have you noticed that Regina looks at Robin the same way?"

Tinkerbell stopped and took Emma's hand before replying with a kind smile.

"I don't know Emma. You might have to ask her about that yourself. Just be careful, I know how she feels about daring to love again. She will go to any lengths to protect herself from being that vulnerable. No matter what the cost is."

Emma squeezed her hand and nodded. "I better be getting back to the station. Thank you for answering my questions."

Tinkerbell let go of her hand. "Of course. Thanks for coming to see me and breaking up the monotony of the days here. There are only so many candles you can make until you start to wish you could go out and just magic your brains out for the night."

Emma decided not to ask what that entailed and just walked back to the car with a wave in Tinkerbell's direction.


	12. Chapter 12

Regina was sitting in her office and trying to focus on the spreadsheet in front of her. But all she could think about was Emma. Why on earth had she told her about her feelings? She had spent all this time concealing what her heart and libido were conspiring about just to blurt it out without provocation. Something was wrong here.

Just as she was wondering if it could have something to do with the powerful magic that she could still sense, her phone rang. It was Mary Margaret, sounding extremely upset.

"Regina! It's Henry. He just collapsed. And…and… he seems to be bleeding from the eyes! I've taken him to the hospital and Whale is examining him right now. I've called Emma and she's on her way!"

Regina noticed that she wasn't breathing and took a large painful gulp of air. "I'll be right there", she said and hung up. Without even grabbing her coat she ran out of her office.

She arrived at the hospital shortly thereafter and pushed her way past the people between her and the door to the room where she could see Mary Margaret and Emma hovering outside.

Mary Margaret was holding the sleeping baby Neal in her arms and her worried eyes were red from crying. Emma looked pale, deathly pale. She kept staring around like she felt that there was something she should be doing. Regina focused her eyes on Emma.

"Emma! Where is he? Is he ok?"

With an anguished voice the pale blonde answered her. "I don't know! He's unconscious and occasionally drops of blood pours out of his eyes. But other than that he seems stable. Whale is in there now and checking him over more thoroughly. He said to wait out here until he was done."

Regina ignored Emma's words and threw open the door to the room where Whale was checking Henry's pulse. She could see her beloved son laying on the bed with a duvet pulled up to his waist. He looked as pale as Emma was but a lot more at peace. He looked like he was just sleeping, Regina thought. He looked like he did all those times when she checked up on him in his bedroom at night.

The only difference now was what Regina just witnessed, a small droplet of red liquid made its way through Henry's closed eyelids and ran down his cheek to leave a red mark behind.

Doctor Whale quickly glanced in Regina's direction and picked up a wet cloth on the table next to the bed. The cloth had been white to begin with but now it was stained with brownish red in several places. Whale used it to dry away the residue of the blood on Henry's face and then called for a fresh cloth.

Regina felt a cold clenching in her chest. It felt like a frozen vice had been placed around her heart and all of a sudden squeezed hard on it. Her darling Henry. No please, not Henry.

Then she felt an arm around her shoulders and heard a low sniffing sound. She turned and saw a face that reminded her so much of Henry's. This one had a drop running down a pale cheek as well, but in Emma's case it was just a tear.

Emma's strong and slender arm held Regina's body close to her own and Regina could feel the warmth of her. She hadn't realised that she was cold until then. Everything in her screamed at her to just burrow into Emma's warm embrace and bury her head in the blonde locks.

Regina was startled to find that as she looked at Emma she didn't just see someone who felt the same as her about Henry. She also saw a safe haven. But she knew that if she gave in and fell into Emma's arms now she could never take that back. No, she had to be strong. Henry would need her strong. Need her to fix this. Her own needs weren't important now.

She looked at Emma, willing the blonde to be strong with her. To be strong enough to help her fix this. Emma stared back without saying a word and a few seconds passed like that.

Regina noticed that Emma's falling tears had stopped and a look of determination was slowly creeping into the blue-green eyes meeting hers. There she was, the powerful woman who would do anything for Henry was back. The only person Regina could rely on to actually do what had to be done, the only person who she could fight side by side with.

Regina rewarded her with the faintest of smiles and reached her hand up to quickly touch Emma's hand which was still draped over her shoulder. Emma nodded her understanding and asked: "Where do we start? Gold?"

Regina replied in a terse voice. "Yes, let's see what that annoying imp knows about this. I'm sure this is connected with the magic I've been sensing."

Emma turned to Mary Margaret. "Are you and Neal ok to stay here for a while? And call us if there are any changes or any new information?"

"Of course! I called David as well and he is on his way. Do you want him to go with you?"

"No. I mean thanks, but I would rather have you and him stay here with Henry. I and Regina should be alright on our own," Emma answered and reached out her hand to squeeze her mother's upper arm.

Then she turned to Regina again. "Ready to go?"

Regina was looking at Henry with unshed tears blurring her vision as she replied. "Yes. Let's go do this so we can come back sooner. I don't want to leave him."

Emma looked at Henry as well and had to clench her fists to keep from breaking down again. "I know what you mean. Okay, Let's go."


	13. Chapter 13

**Note:** A quick note to all of you who are worried about Henry, rest assured that I would have put a warning on this fanfic if there was any major character deaths. Obviously, Emma and Regina don't know that though.

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><p>Regina was pounding hard on the door to Gold's shop. No one was answering. Emma was on the phone, she had tried to call Gold to no avail and was now trying Belle's newly bought cell phone. After trying for what felt like an eternity she hung up and turned to give Regina the bad news.<p>

The petite brunette had left the door alone now and stood with her eyes closed instead. For a second Emma wondered if she was counting to ten to contain her temper until she remembered that the mayor of Storybrooke didn't really do that kind of thing.

Regina opened her eyes and said with frustration: "I can't feel him anywhere near here. Wherever he is, he is obviously out of my reach."

"Something you have in common with their cell reception then. I'm not getting through to neither his nor Belle's phone," Emma said with annoyance as she put her phone back in her pocket.

Regina screamed in frustration and made a gesture with her hand. Gold's door crumpled like it had been made of paper.

"This is unacceptable! Where is that devil of a man? He's always around. Sticking his nose in where it doesn't belong but when you need him, he's nowhere to be god damned found! Just like everyone else in this stinking town! Unreliable! I wish I would have just turned them all into mice instead of cursing them!" Regina's shouts echoed down the street.

Emma could see people in the houses moving their curtains carefully to watch with frightened faces. She was just as scared and frustrated as Regina but she knew that raging wouldn't help right now.

In what she hoped was a calming voice she tried to reason with the furious brunette. "Regina. Calm down, we will get to the bottom of this!"

Regina turned to face Emma and suddenly Emma was reminded of whom Regina Mills used to be. The woman before her was more the dangerous monster that Cora and Rumplestiltskin had created than the woman Emma had started to fall in love with.

Regina's voice had gone from shouting to a cold snarl as she answered: "Of course we'll get to the bottom of this, dear. But unless we get the people who might have answers to talk to us we won't do it in time! As you may have noticed, our son is in grave danger. Again! And I will NOT lose him!"

Emma blinked. She might be one of the few people who didn't fear Regina. But even she got a cold chill down her spine when Regina went into full Evil Queen mode. But unlike some others, Emma also felt a pleasurable quickening of the heart and goose bumps telling her that she was on some level enjoying the cruel and powerful look that Regina now wore.

She felt the strangest urge to either fall to her knees to please Regina somehow or take the smaller woman on in head to head battle. Preferably naked on a bunch of pillows. Just as those thoughts had entered her head she admonished herself. Now was not the time to address her sexual frustration and growing interest in what exactly was under Regina's white shirts.

Henry. She had to focus on Henry. Emma cleared her voice and calmly asked: "What about the Blue Fairy? Should we call the convent and see if she has any answers?"

Regina was pacing back and forwards outside of Gold's shop. She stopped and looked at Emma as if she was completely vapid. "The blue fairy? THE BLUE FAIRY? Haven't you noticed she's useless? Anyway, she loathes me and won't be of any help."

Regina's voice had gone back to shouting and Emma could see more curtain twitching around them. She had to get Regina out of view before people started to be really frightened of her.

"Regina. I think we need to get out of here. We need to calm you down and then regroup. There must be something we can do. But we need to calm down."

Regina clenched her jaw and stared angrily at Emma again before replying: "We? We? You mean that I need to calm down, don't you dear? Fine. Let's go back to the hospital."

"No! No, I don't want you to be this upset around Henry. I think he needs calm right now, conscious or not. Can we go to your office or your house?" Emma asked and hoped this wouldn't backfire.

Regina looked like she was going to argue for a second but then she seemed to think it over and agree. "Fine, I can change into something warmer and try to do a location spell to find Gold."

Regina grabbed Emma's arm a little harder than Emma thought was necessary and then she made them disappear in a cloud of purple smoke. Emma had her eyes closed shut and when she opened them she was in Regina's house in Mifflin Street.

They were in a room that Emma had never been in though. She looked around and saw the big bed and with a shock she realised they must be in Regina's bedroom. Regina had launched herself at her closet and was rifling through the neatly arranged clothes while mumbling about a spare coat.

She found a long charcoal-grey coat and turned around. She looked at Emma with almost surprise in her eyes. "Why are you still here? For heaven's sake, why didn't you go down to my office? I need to cast the spell to find Gold and you might be able to help. If you plan on being of any use at all to me that is, _sheriff_!"

Emma could hear from Regina's voice that she was still completely wound up and furious. She had to calm down or they weren't going to achieve anything. And to be honest, Emma's raw nerves really couldn't handle the constant stream of abuse and blame that Regina was piling on her. Her own anger couldnt be ignored anymore.

"Could you just calm the hell down, _Madame Mayor_? You being a bitch isn't going to help us save Henry, you know. It never does." Emma's voice had a bite of its own now. Maybe not as potent as Regina's but definitely effective as it was rarer.

Regina glared at her. "Being a bitch? I'm trying to save your flesh and blood here and I'm being a bitch? You know, I am pretty damn tired of your self-righteous way of always believing everyone should be and feel like you. Some people have stronger feelings and show them, ok?"

Emma stared at her open-mouthed. "Showing your feelings? Really, showing your feelings? You are the woman who apparently knew that we had something between us long before I did but was too cowardly to act on it!"

At Emma's words Regina seemed to just snap. With a magic push she shoved Emma up against the wall and walked over there until she was face to face with the blonde. Her rage-fueled brain had a millisecond of clarity to remember that this was how they ended up kissing in her office but she was beyond caring about that.

She growled: "That has nothing to do with this. But let me just say this, I'm not a coward, I've just learned from my mistakes. I know what I am and what happens when I try to love. One day of being romantically involved with me and you would run for the hills. Or rather move to Boston."

Emma looked into Regina's eyes trying to decide what to do. Her over-heated brain gave her three options. One, leave Regina and go be with Henry. Two, try to reason with Regina. Three, put an end to this nonsense. Emma never backed down from a fight and she was a problem solver.

So in the spirit of option three she reached her hands down between her body and Regina's. She noticed that the body heat between their torsos was higher than it had been in the office. She grabbed on to either sides of Regina's waistcoat and using every anger-fueled muscle in her arms and shoulders she tore it apart. The three buttons keeping it on flew across the floor next to them.

Regina looked down at her torn waistcoat and Emma's hands with fury burning in her brown eyes and then back up at Emma. "What are you doing?"

Emma's voice sounded like an animal growl when she replied: "What I should have done in your office. Resolving this. We either fight or fuck. One way or another nothing else is happening here until some of this steam is burned off. _Madame mayor_."


	14. Chapter 14

**Note:** This is going to be a LONG and a VERY M-rated chapter. Easily embarrassed people might want to skip this one. (Why does the sexy chapters always end up being so long… no, don't answer that!)

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><p>Regina felt dizzy. So many emotions were competing in her: fear, frustration, irritation, worry and deep desire. Emma was right. Something had to happen, neither of them could go on another second like this. At least Regina couldn't.<p>

She had wanted and hated Emma from the first second she saw her on her porch while dropping Henry off. Then the feelings of hate had changed to love but she had to keep pretending it was hate. It was easier that way, safer that way. But the wanting had always stayed with Regina. She couldn't count the many nights when she had come under the ministrations of her hands with Emma's name on her lips.

Now she could have so much more than that. It could be more than Emma's name on her lips as she came. All of a sudden all her emotions and thoughts evaporated and her body took control. She grabbed Emma's beautiful face with both her hands and kissed her hungrily.

Her lips had barely made contact with Emma's when the blonde parted her lips to give Regina access inside. There was no hesitation or second thoughts between them now. It was too late for that. There was only need.

Their hands moved over each other's clothed bodies with urgency. All of a sudden Emma grabbed Regina's shoulders and started pushing her forwards without ending the kiss. They moved further and further from the wall. Then Regina felt the back of her legs bump into the bed and allowed herself to fall down onto it.

Emma landed heavily on top of her and Regina moaned into the kiss at the feel of the blonde's body on top of her own. Her hands were tangling in Emma's long hair and Emma's hands were caressing her hips and down her thighs. Regina could feel her skin heating up wherever Emma's hands landed. She needed to feel that touch on her naked skin.

Clearly Emma was thinking along the same lines as she could feel her trying to rip at Regina's shirt buttons buried underneath her own torso. In her fantasies Regina had always enjoyed undressing Emma. But there wasn't time for that now. This was about quenching a hunger and about pushing the worry and fear out of their minds. Regina waved her hand and all of a sudden they were both naked.

At the moment their skin touched they both broke off the kiss. Regina to moan loudly and Emma to say: "God damn, I love your magic skills." Regina couldn't help quickly giggling as she hoped to herself that Emma would say that further on in the proceedings too.

But her mirth was soon gone as she felt Emma's hands now touch her naked body. Nothing had ever felt that good. Until she felt Emma's lips on her body. The blonde had started to kiss her neck and then worked her way down between Regina's breasts.

Before she started on the two beautiful mounds on either side of her face, Emma looked up at Regina with misty eyes and said "Do you know that you are the sexiest fucking thing alive?" Regina just gave her a huge grin and while pushing Emma's face towards her left nipple she whispered: "Funny, I thought you had that title, my dear."

Then her nipple was buried deep in Emma's warm, wet mouth and she was gently sucking on it. Regina grabbed a handful of the sheets below her in her right hand and put her left hand on Emma's head and gently seized a handful of the beautiful blonde locks. As Emma increased the intensity of the sucking she felt Regina's grip harden on her hair and smiled inwardly.

When Regina's grip started to hurt her she stopped sucking and looked up at the brunette. Regina had her head back and her mouth slightly opened. Emma could see the grip that Regina had on the sheets and realised that the hand in her hair had actually been gentle in comparison. God she needed to make this woman come.

Emma decided that she would have to leave the rest of Regina's perfect, taut body for later. She needed to find the place that would release the brunette and feed some of the worst of the hunger. If she was honest this decision was just as much in her own interests as she could smell the warm scent of Regina's desire emanating from between her legs. And it smelled delicious.

Emma got on her knees just below the bed, then she grabbed Regina's thighs and pulled her closer to the end of the bed. She spread the brunette's beautiful legs and looked at what she uncovered between them. Neatly trimmed dark curls glistening with moisture framed the dusky pink inner lips and prominent clit.

Regina's pussy shimmered with wetness and seemed to emanate warmth. The heady, slightly spicy smell made Emma feel dizzy. A distant voice in her mind pointed out that it smelled like Christmas spices to her and Emma had to smile at the thought.

Regina looked down and saw Emma looking at her most intimate place with a joyous smile and hunger in her eyes. Feeling Emma watching her so intently, feeling so exposed and vulnerable actually felt good. Seeing that Emma could see something so private and naked of hers and seemingly adore it so much made Regina feel safer somehow. Safer and more aroused than she had ever been.

Before she knew what she was doing Regina heard the words coming from her lips. "Lick me. Please Emma. Lick it now and never, ever stop." Emma didn't have to be told twice. She eagerly moved forward until she was close enough to Regina's pussy that the older woman could feel her breath, feeling cool on her overheated and sensitive parts.

Then she slid her tongue along the entire expanse of Regina's pink flesh, gathering up as much liquid as she could with her tongue and then letting that taste fill her mouth. Regina moaned very loudly and with a pleasant shiver Emma realised that Regina was probably a screamer. She had always loved women who were loud in bed.

She started licking intently now. Normally she liked teasing her lovers and taking her time. But right now both she and Regina needed satisfaction. She focused on Regina's clit and alternated between licking small circles and big circles over it.

Both of Regina's hands were now in her hair and grabbing on for dear life. Emma didn't mind, she wanted it rough right now. She licked faster and faster and could hear Regina's moans and heavy breathing respond more and more.

Needing to be inside Regina when she came, Emma slowly slid her ring finger inside Regina and was rewarded with a: "Oh god, baby yes. More. More of you in me." Emma took her ring finger out and entered the older woman with two fingers instead. She curled them to rub at the wall separating Regina's passage and her clit and massaged it hard as she licked as fast as her tongue would go.

This was what it took to make Regina explode. She screamed loudly and desperately while holding on to Emma's hair with her right hand and her shoulder with the left. It carried on for longer than Emma expected and she proudly kept licking at the delicious clit while her fingers felt the inside of Regina's pussy convulsing.

At the crescendo of the orgasm Regina's back arched up and Emma had to lift her head to keep the tongue-contact with her clit. Then Regina collapsed back onto the bed with a loud exhale. Emma leant back and smiled happily while she wiped her chin with the back of her right hand.

Regina was vaguely aware of her surroundings. There was a soft bed underneath her, there was the smell of sex in the air and there was Emma's left hand resting on her thigh but it all seemed sort of far away. When Regina was most aware of was an all-encompassing feeling of indulgent, comfy satisfaction. Every nerve ending was tingling with pleasure and she could feel muscles that had felt stiff for years relaxing.

She tried to move her body, she knew what she wanted to do more than anything. She wanted to make Emma feel like this. Right now! But her body wasn't obeying her command. As she struggled to regain control of her jellied limbs she could feel Emma laying down on top of her and kissing her neck again. Softly but hungrily.

Then Regina could feel the blonde's hand brushing past her skin as it slid between their bodies to rest between Emma's legs. She was touching herself! But, that was Regina's task! How dare she? As usual Regina could use her flaring temper as momentum and she managed to make herself move.

She used all of her remaining strength to roll them around so that she was on top of the cheeky blonde. She summoned her old Evil Queen voice to growl: "get your hands off that! It's MINE!" Then she brazenly placed her hand over Emma's sex and cupped it in her hand. Her hand was immediately soaked and she could hear Emma whimper and bite her lip.

The stunning blonde was all hers now. She looked Emma's face over quickly, enjoying the features she had stared longingly at so many times. She remembered thinking once that one could use those gorgeous and prominent cheekbones as bookshelves, she brought her free hand up so caress one of them and Emma smiled at her. So then she had to caress Emma's smiling lips.

Emma parted her lips and gently licked at Regina's fingertips. In response Regina increased the pressure on the hand cupping Emma's pussy and she heard the blonde moan quietly. Regina couldn't wait any longer. She had to touch that tempting wetness. She had never touched another woman like this and she was terrified of getting it wrong.

She experimentally ran her fingers over the soft and swollen lips and realised with shock that she couldn't feel any hair anywhere. She hadn't noticed that when she was cupping it. She looked down to the wet treasure under her fingers and then back up at Emma with raised eyebrows.

"What", Emma groaned questioningly, "did you expect a penis?" Regina slapped Emma's sensitive pussy in response and growled: "no, but I thought everyone had…you know, hair down there."

Emma laughed a little while still moaning quietly at the feeling of Regina's exploring fingers moving around. "We do. But I started shaving it when I was younger and well, since then I just haven't stopped. I hate how it feels when it starts to grow out again. But I generally prefer it when women have a bit of bush. Does it freak you out?"

Regina quickly shook her head. She was mentally adding the shaving procedure to her fantasies of Emma showering. Her exploring fingers trailed over Emma's clit by accident and Emma let out a loud whimper and bit her lip again. Regina smiled. There. That was what she was going for.

She gently started to caress the little, hard nub. Increasing and decreasing the pressure depending on what made Emma's little whimpers go louder. All of a sudden Emma groaned: "Faster! Please!"

Regina acquiesced immediately and while her fingers rubbed Emma's little clit fast Regina bent down over the blonde's chest and started to kiss her breasts. She finally placed her tongue on Emma's left nipple, close to the blonde's heart, and let it mirror the movements of her fingers on Emma's clit.

Emma started to move her body in a slight vibrating way to meet and increase Regina's movements on her clit. Then all of a sudden Emma banged her fist on the bed two times and then wailed Regina's name as she came hard. Regina savoured every second of watching Emma orgasm. She couldn't believe that she could make this divine creature feel like this.

As soon as Emma was laying still and starting to breathe normally Regina kissed her. It was a soft kiss, full of emotion. The only thought in Regina's mind was that now that they had satisfied the worst of the need they could take their time. There was so much of Emma's body that's she wanted to get to know.

Emma smiled tiredly as she felt Regina's hand start to caress from her hip up to her side and up to her chest. Regina cupped one of Emma's breasts and marvelled at the creamy skin with the peach coloured nipples. Peaches and cream. God, the woman actually looked like dessert!

She reached down and took an erect nipple in her mouth again. She sucked it gently and she could hear Emma starting to softly moan between hastened breaths. She slid her hand back down between the blonde's thighs to play in the wetness. Maybe this time she would try to lick her?

Then her phone rang. Normally both women would have ignored it but the maternal instinct seemed to override even their feelings for each other. It could be about Henry. With a panicked look Regina threw herself at the phone, praying that it wouldn't be Snow calling to say that Henry was worse. As she answered she heard Gold's voice.

"Hi Regina. I've been trying to call you and Emma several times! I and Belle have been by the well in the woods, trying to see if we can trace what is creating the magic that we both sensed. Nothing so far. Was that what Emma was calling us about?"

Regina was still trying to get her brain to work after the mind-blowing sex and she barely managed to make her voice sound normal as she answered: "Well yes. But it has gotten worse. Something has happened to Henry. Meet us at the hospital in ten minutes and I'll explain. Mary Margaret and David are already there."

"Ok, I'll see you there then."

"Good. Oh and Gold…" Regina trailed off with a confused look on her face.

"Yes?"

"Why did you call me when Emma wasn't answering? I hadn't called you?"

"No, but I called her parents and they weren't answering. Clearly because they are in a hospital. So the next port of call would be you."

"Oh. I see. Well, I'll see you at the hospital in ten minutes then."

Regina turned around to face Emma. The blonde was standing naked and looking around the room while saying: "I gathered that it was Gold calling and that we are meeting in the hospital. Good. Just one question, honey."

Regina startled at the sound of the term of endearment but didn't say anything about it. They had to sort out this mess between them later. Henry was all that mattered now.

"Yes, what?"

Emma looked at her with a determined look and her hands on her hips. "Where the hell did you magic our clothes to?"


	15. Chapter 15

Emma and Regina walked in to the hospital to find Gold and Belle had arrived before them. They were talking to Mary Margaret and David outside the room Henry was in. As soon as they had joined them Emma noticed that her father looked extremely pale but she put it down to worry.

Gold was the first to speak. "Right, I know everyone is worried and I know we haven't been able to find an explanation what is going on here so I propose we go over what we know."

Regina nodded and started them off, "we know something magical has been going on and that it must have started off whatever has hurt Henry. But we don't know what it is or when it started."

Gold interrupted her, "well actually, unless my senses deceive me it started the day when Grumpy came into my shop and started accusing me of stealing his friend's jug. But unless he has developed magical powers I don't see how he could be involved."

Emma was looking down at the floor with a pensive look when she said "hmm."

Regina stared at her. "What is 'hmm', Ms Swan?"

Emma looked up startled. "oh sorry, I was just realising something, that was the day my foot started to do that weird tingling."

Regina kept staring at the blonde and cocked an eyebrow. "Really Sheriff, I don't think this is the time to discuss your podiatric ailments."

Gold was staring at Emma too now. "Actually Regina, I think it might be. Tell me Sheriff Swan, did this tingling start after you had visited my shop?"

Emma looked confused. "Yeah, actually. I was in your shop when my sock felt wet all of a sudden. Then it dried and after that I felt this tingling in my foot occasionally. Thinking about it, I think it mostly tingled when I was around Regina."

There was silence for a while and everyone stared at Gold who seemed to be deep in thought. Then Gold turned to Belle. "I think I might know what this is. Belle, do you remember that blue liquid in the vial that you broke?"

She nodded slowly. "Yeah, the secret revealing potion. It spilled into the floorboards. Why?"

"Because that potion is meant to be taken through the skin and I was warned that the potion does have a mind of its own. What if it was in the floor and when it sensed Emma standing on the floor it seeped into her?" Gold asked in an incredulous voice.

"Do you think what happened to Henry has something to do with this spilled potion then?" Mary Margaret asked.

Gold turned to her. "I think it might. It would be too much of a coincidence otherwise." He turned back to Emma and asked, "you said your foot tingled mostly when you were in Regina's presence? If my memory serves, the potion is supposed to seek out the person with the secret your subconscious mostly wants to know."

Emma quickly looked at Regina and then at Gold. "Yeah, and to be honest, thinking about it in hindsight, it tingled more and more the closer I got to a secret that I really did want to know. And then the tingling stopped when Regina told me… well… the secret."

David, who looked very pale indeed by now, interjected in an exasperated voice. "Gold, how does this potion work?"

Gold explained about the concept of a secret for a secret and that if no payment, in the shape of a secret, was unearthed there would be consequences. He finished with, "and it has to be a big secret. Saying out loud that you stealthily watch bad soaps when no one is looking doesn't count."

Mary Margaret turned to Emma. "So you found out a secret. If Gold is right and this is down to this potion, this must mean to that you didn't reveal a secret back?"

Emma looked confused. "But I thought I kinda did. I mean, I returned her feelings and I said so. "

Regina said Emma's name in a warning tone of voice and Emma turned to look at her.

She frowned and then said "I'm sorry, Regina. I know you don't want everyone to know the shameful secret that you have feelings for me but honestly there is nothing to hide here."

Gold smiled. "Ah, I think I see it now. I think the problem here is that Regina has long known and concealed that she cares for you, Sheriff Swan. And that was the secret she involuntarily divulged when your foot stopped tingling?"

Emma nodded. Regina looked down on the floor and breathed angrily.

Gold continued, "and you were just now thinking that you showing that you returned those feelings would be payment to the potion?"

"Yeah, I suppose so." Emma answered.

Gold inclined his head agreeing and smiled. "Ah, but you weren't hiding it, were you? I have seen the way you have looked at Regina lately, like you knew there was something you should be doing but you couldn't quite remember what. The whole town has wondered if you weren't smitten with our dear Mayor but you didn't actually know, did you?"

"No, not really. Not until that day," Emma conceded in an embarrassed voice.

"Then you weren't revealing a secret, were you? You weren't hiding anything, you just weren't aware. So you were just uncovering an unknown fact. That is not payment. And when the truth revealing potion doesn't get payment, it goes after the person it was used by or their loved ones. Or so the witch who traded it to me said."

Regina now spoke while trying to pretend she wasn't blushing ever so slightly. "So this potion has attacked Henry because Emma hasn't told it one of her big secrets?"

Gold nodded. "Yes, but if we are being exact, the secret doesn't have to be Emma's. She just has to reveal it. That could mean that she convinces someone else to say a secret. One way or another an important secret has to be spoken out loud. It's a peculiar and somewhat illogical arrangement, which is why I never used the potion."

Belle bit her lip before asking, "so if Emma asked us all to divulge a big secret… one of them might be big enough to match Regina's secret and then the deal with the potion would be complete and it would just go away?"

"Yes, if what the witch told me was right, the potion will just disperse into the air and everyone who has become ill will be better again," Gold agreed.

All of a sudden they heard a loud bang. David had fallen to the floor. Mary Margaret crouched down as fast as she could without dropping the baby. She shouted David's name and the baby woke up and started crying.

It was then that they all noticed that little droplets of blood had begun to pour from David's closed eyes.


	16. Chapter 16

Everyone leaned over David on the floor to check if he was alright, except Regina who ran to get doctor Whale. When she returned with him he took one look at David and ordered a room to be cleared next to Henry's.

While David was being carried into the room Emma and Belle both held Mary Margaret who was crying her eyes out while trying to soothe the baby. Gold and Regina looked at each other with looks that mirrored each other's helplessness and awkwardness.

Emma turned to them while extricating herself from the close cuddle and just draping a protective arm around her mother instead. She cleared her throat to keep her voice under control before speaking.

"Right, so we gotta settle this right now before this gets worse. I have been racking my brain but I can't for the life of me think of a big enough secret. So I'm gonna ask you all, does anyone here want to volunteer a secret? I don't want us to all have to do it like we did when we rescued Neil in Neverland. Big secrets can hurt so if possible, let's not have too many."

Everyone looked back at Emma. Belle looked thoughtful, Mary Margaret still looked too upset to think straight and Gold merely looked distant, like he was pretending to be somewhere else. Regina sighed before she spoke up.

"Well, the last big secret was obviously mine so I suppose I have done my share and besides, I don't really do this whole sharing business. I'm not really that kind of person. If no one else has anything, I can try. For Henry's sake and for David's. But I'd really rather not."

"Fair enough. Anyone else?" Emma asked hopefully.

Belle looked at the ground and bit her lip thoughtfully. "I can't think of anything big enough right now. Hmm. I suppose… well I suppose I could say one thing."

Emma and Regina both looked at her hopefully. Gold stood closer to Belle and put his hand on her upper arm. "Belle. You don't have to," he said in a low voice. She nodded at him with a smile.

"I know, but someone has to try. Ok, here goes. Emma, ask me about my fear." Belle said and stood up straighter and put on a brave face.

Emma shoot her a look of gratitude before answering. "Ok. So, Belle, what are you afraid of?"

The librarian replied without a seconds doubt but with a quiver in her voice. "I'm afraid of not being enough. Of not being enough for my Rumple. I have faith in him but I know that he needs me to remind him to be the best man he can be. And sometimes I think I am not good enough for the job. I can be a bad person sometimes. Who am I to influence someone else to be good, right?"

Silence fell in the room. Gold put his arm around Belle and was whispering something the others couldn't hear. Although they could see Belle's face turn from frown to faint smile.

Regina made a doubting face but still ran over to the door to Henry's room. She stared at him intently through the glass and with a heavy heart she saw another drop of blood run down his cheek. She turned back to the others but looked directly at Emma.

"No change. It didn't work," she said grimly.

Mary Margaret gave a small sob and then cleared her throat. She handed Neil over to Emma. "Could you hold him for a while, I need to get myself together," she asked. Emma just nodded and very carefully held her baby brother.

Mary Margaret took out a pack of tissues from her handbag and blew her nose. Then she smiled at Belle. "Thank you for trying. I guess it wasn't a big enough secret because everyone who knows you knows that you are such a good person, and that is what a good person would think. We need something more dramatic I think, something bigger. I guess this IS going to turn out like that time we all had to spill our secrets to save Neil, and now it's my turn." She looked at Emma and slowly nodded with a brave smile.

Emma looked back at her, she took in her mother's red eyes and trembling lower lip. She knew that no matter how valiant and strong her mother usually was, right now she was just a woman who, due to a new baby, hadn't slept properly in days and just found out that her husband and grandson was ever so slowly bleeding to death.

Emma was also aware of that the last time her mother had divulged a secret it had hurt like hell. But she had to ask anyway, this was all her fault after all. If the potion hadn't sensed that she would need to know Regina's secret none of them would be here and most of all, no one would be in a hospital bed. She steeled herself and found herself taking a quick look at Regina. The strong look in those brown eyes gave her some extra courage and so she turned to face her mother with a kind smile.

"Mary Margaret. Do you have a secret to tell?" Emma asked and felt like it sounded as if they were playing some kind of macabre truth or dare. Her mother gave her another of those smiles that were meant to make Emma feel better but did just the opposite.

"Yes, I truly hate that you are in love with Regina. I can't help it, but let me try to explain. I think I have seen more than anyone else how your lives constantly seem to bring you two together. And you are so alike, like two sides of the same coin, one light and one dark. Both so scarred from past loves but both so capable of truly loving. But I hate it anyway, I hate it because no matter how much I know that Regina has changed there is still a part of me that is terrified of her. I was afraid she would hurt you before you were born and I am afraid she will hurt you in a different way now."

Emma just stood there and stared at her mother. She wished she could say that she was surprised but to be honest, this was exactly what she would expect her mother to feel. Regina seemed to echo those feelings.

"Well, Snow. I hardly think that was a secret. I think we could all have told you that. But I'll go check on Henry," Regina said and then walked quickly to the door, everyone noticing that's she didn't run this time.

She stood there for a while, watching the blood transfusion bag slowly pump blood in Henry's arm and the heart monitor beep steadily. Then she saw another red tear fall down her son's cheek and returned to the others with a sigh and a shake of the head.

Emma sighed deeply. "Right. So it's either going to be me, Regina or you Gold. I'll start. The only secret I can think of right now is that I…," she sighed again while thinking about how to formulate her thoughts into words.

"A lot of the time I hate this place. Sometimes I just want to be back in the world with normal problems and situations I can understand and… well... people I can relate to. People with shitty pasts that have more to do with being broke than being chased by dragons, you know? I love you guys and I will obviously stay here but some mornings I just wake up and wish I was in Boston, or New York or just somewhere… normal." Emma quieted down again and kept her eyes fastened on her brother's sleeping face so she didn't have to meet anyone else's eyes.


	17. Chapter 17

Everyone was still staring at Emma, no one knowing quite what to say. Until Regina solved that problem. "In other news, water is wet!" Regina rolled her eyes. "That's hardly a secret. We can all see you close your eyes and count to ten when we can't locate Japan on a map or when we don't know what Rumblr is."

Emma looked at Regina with passionate animosity. "First of all, I did say that I couldn't think of a really good secret from the start. Secondly, it's TUMBLR. And no, Mary Margaret, it's not the thing on top of the washing machine," Emma said with a quick joking look at her mother. Mary Margaret was rubbing her tear-swollen eyes but took a break to give Emma an injured and slightly annoyed look.

Regina spoke once again. "Fine, so that leaves you and me, Gold. Any chance of you volunteering?" She stared at him. He stared back. This went on for long enough for baby Neal to wake up and squirm in Emma's arms. She handed the baby back to her mother. It was clear that Gold wasn't going to budge.

Regina breathed out in a short huff. "I should have known. So it seems that I once again have to divulge a big secret," she said and stared into space for a second.

Emma brushed off some imaginary baby-germs from her top and corrected Regina. "Well yeah. But don't forget that I have to prompt you to do it so don't just blurt it out, _Madame Mayor_."

Regina gave her an icy look. "I understand how this works, _Ms Swan_." The air between them could have been cut with a knife.

Gold chuckled quietly. "You do make quite the pair. I can never tell if you are going to throttle each other or kiss."

Regina looked at him with contempt. "And you and Ms Outlandish-accent over there are a perfectly normal couple? Remind me of how you met? Skiing in the Alps? Reaching for the same cucumber in the local grocery shop?"

"Enough!" Emma's shout silenced them both. "Regina, please. Just try and think of something to say." Emma's voice sounded normal but her eyes gave Regina a pleading look. Regina felt her sarcasm melt away and remembered why they were doing this.

When she spoke she had an uncharacteristic uncertainty in her voice. "I wish I didn't have to do this in front of you all, but I suppose it is best to just get it over with. Ms Swan…" Regina looked down at the floor. Her chest heaved with her fast breath and Emma could have sworn that the brunette's cheek had gotten the faintest tint of blush.

Regina composed herself and started speaking again. "Emma… When you first came to Storybrooke I was afraid you would easily take Henry away from me because he, and everyone in Storybrooke, would be drawn to you. Because even I couldn't help being drawn to you. In fact I couldn't take my eyes off you nor stop thinking about you. After that it just got worse. The more I got to know you and the more you started to despise me, the more I fell in love with you. And I knew I had to hide it because I couldn't have you."

Regina looked up to see if anyone had dared to smirk at her or pity her, but everyone was wisely looking in other directions with blank expressions. So Regina continued, "I was with Robin to try and distract myself from you. To cure myself of you. Before that I tried alcohol, various distractions, getting rid of you and then finally, being with someone else."

Regina stopped and took a deep breath. It was clear that being this open and vulnerable was more painful to the former queen than any torture ever had been. She stood a little straighter and carried on speaking.

"But the truth is that not counting the innocent teenage love I had with Daniel - you are the only person I have ever truly fallen in love with. Despite me trying so hard to avoid it. So there, my first secret is that I am in love with you and my second secret is that you are the only one I have ever truly loved. Oh and I swear to god, _imp_! If you even start to say 'twou looove' I will end you."

Gold held out his hands defensively and seemed unusually serious. Emma took one step towards Regina but then stopped and looked unsure. "Oh for god's sake give her a kiss while I go check if Henry and David are ok now," Mary Margaret said with a small smile.

Emma grinned apologetically at Regina who was now looking at her with her arms crossed over her chest. Then there was a devilish glint in the blue-green eyes of Emma Swan and she crossed the short distance between her and Regina to give the shorter woman a heartfelt kiss. Regina made a displeased grunt and kept her arms folded over her chest like a barrier between her and the blonde but she didn't push Emma away.

The kiss abruptly ended when Mary Margaret came back and said "no, I'm afraid that didn't work."

Gold made an impatient noise. "Of course it didn't. What she said was just a continuation of the first secret! How would that ever work?" Regina looked at him the second he stopped speaking and then said in an acid tone, "Ok Mr Expert. If you know of some juicier secret, by all means… show us how it's done!"

Gold took a deep breath and looked at Belle with pain in his eyes. Belle swallowed and said in a tremulous voice, "since you are looking at me I gather that there IS a secret and that it involves me? I probably don't want to know but there are lives at stake here. So just tell me, and we will deal with the consequences later."

Gold glanced in the direction of the two hospitals rooms housing the unconscious bodies of Henry and David. Belle looked at him searchingly. "Come on Rumple, it might be you or me next... right? Just say it. We have survived a lot of horrible stuff. Whatever this is, I'm sure we can handle it." Belle smiled at him encouragingly.

Gold's voice broke as he said "Oh Belle, I'm not sure we can."

Regina's patience had run out. "Wait for Emma to ask you and then just tell us! If not then let us go out and try to find someone else with a big secret," she snarled with fire in her eyes.

Gold didn't even look at her but just held up a hand. "You won't find a secret as big as mine, I can assure you. I am our best hope to end this."

Emma walked over to Gold and grabbed his arm gently but firmly. "Then tell us the secret, Gold. That is your grandchild in there! If you won't tell us for our sake, tell us for your son's sake." Emma's voice was curt and deadly serious.

Gold closed his eyes for a brief moment and when he opened them he just nodded silently. He fixed his gaze on Belle. "I'm so sorry, my love. But the dagger, with which you can control me, that I gave to you was a fake. I still have the real dagger."


	18. Chapter 18

Belle stared at Gold for what felt like several minutes but in real life was mere seconds. Then she turned and ran for the exit. Gold followed her as fast as he could while shouting her name. As soon as they had gone Emma, Regina and Mary Margaret looked at each other. They all looked worried for the couple who had just left, even Regina. But there was also an unanswered question in their eyes. Did it work?

As if set off by an unheard signal both Emma and Regina sprinted to Henry's door. Emma opened it and walked up to the bed with the unconscious boy gingerly, Regina right on her heels. Henry laid there looking very small and pale. Then slowly his eyes began to flutter open and he made a small noise.

Regina put a hand over her mouth to stifle a happy whimper and both hers and Emma's eyes were filling with tears of joy. They both rushed to Henry's bed and sat down on either side of their son.

Mary Margaret had followed them in a slower pace to not wake the baby again. As soon as she saw that Henry was waking up she hurried to David's room. Emma, Regina and the still groggy Henry could hear her happy laugh and exclamation of "Charming! You're ok!" Emma looked at Regina with a huge smile and even Regina couldn't help but give a little grin at her old enemy's joy and relief.

Henry quietly whispered "Mom, what happened?" Both Emma and Regina began to answer and then stopped with embarrassed grins at the mix-up. Emma looked at Regina and indicated a hand towards Henry. "He probably meant you." Regina rewarded Emma with an adoring look that nearly took the blonde's breath away. Suddenly she really wished they were alone again.

"It's a long story Henry. I promise we will tell you more tomorrow but for now I want to get you home to bed. Maybe with a tall glass of milk first," Regina said tenderly.

Henry smiled weakly. "You mean I don't have to brush my teeth tonight?"

Emma shook her head while laughing and Regina just grinned despite herself. "No, Henry for just this once you don't have to brush your teeth."

After Whale had given both Henry and David a quick check up and seen that they were back to normal they were allowed to go home. Mary Margaret and David started heading home with the baby but without Emma. They had all agreed that Henry would stay with Regina so he wouldn't be disturbed by screaming babies or the more cramped sleeping space in Mary Margaret's apartment.

It was actually Mary Margaret who suggested that Emma should go with Regina and Henry. To keep an eye on them both, as she phrased it. David had looked a bit confused at this but his wife promised to explain later. Emma hadn't argued with it, she had merely looked inquiringly at Regina and the brunette had given a curt nod without making eye contact.

Safely ensconced behind the walls of 108 Mifflin Street Regina had given Henry a glass of milk while Emma prepared his bed for him. He got a goodnight kiss and painfully tight hug from each mother and then he tumbled into bed and slept as soon as his head hit the pillow.

Emma and Regina stopped in the corridor outside his room. Regina looked very uncomfortable and still wouldn't look Emma in the eye. "Well Ms Swan, I suppose I should show you were the guest room is? You must be tired."

Emma chuckled mirthlessly. "Oh no you don't. There is no way you are just sending me to bed now. We are going to go downstairs, you are going to pour us each a drink and then we are going to talk about all of this."

Regina stared at her incredulously. "Now that sounded very much like an order, _Sheriff_. Must I remind you who pays whose salary here?"

Emma moved so that she stood so close to Regina that their noses almost met. Her voice was no-nonsense when she quietly said, "Money or power has nothing to do with this, Regina Mills. I want to talk about this because I think we can both end up very happy here, now you can fight me on that or you can be an adult and just hear me out."

Then Emma softened her voice and grabbed the shorter woman's hand that hung by her side. "Please. Talk to me, Regina. Just hear me out at least. I won't hurt you."

Regina took a deep breath and as she exhaled she said "Fine. I'll go get glasses and some brandy. I'll meet you by the sofa in a couple of minutes."

Emma sat on the sofa waiting, her foot nervously tapping on the expensive rug underneath it. Regina walked in with two tumblers and a luxurious bottle of brown liquid. As she put them down Emma stared at her. Regina was wearing a black dress now. It was conservative looking enough to be a dress that the brunette could wear at the office but tight enough to set Emma's heart racing.

Regina sighed. "Yes, I changed. The clothes I was wearing had been through a lot today so it was time for a change. I usually don't use magic for that sort of thing but I didn't want you to have to wait while I went up to my wardrobe."

Saying that was a mistake as they both ended up thinking about when Regina went into her wardrobe for her spare coat and they ended up on the bed. Both women swallowed and looked away from each other. This was going to be a long night and a difficult discussion.


	19. Chapter 19

Emma slouched back on the sofa. Looking at Regina's new outfit she realised she was still wearing the same clothes she had put on this morning. She discreetly leaned her head down to sniff herself and was happy to only notice the slightest whiff of perfume.

But then that was strange, Emma hadn't put any perfume on this morning. Preferring the subtler scent of her hair products she only really wore perfume to parties or dates, she must be smelling of Regina's perfume after their adventure in the brunette's bedroom.

This made her smile and she remembered her dream. Regina had said that they might as well wear the same perfume as they always ended up smelling the same after a while. Now that had come true and Emma found herself hoping for all she was worth that this wouldn't be the one and only time it happened.

She forced a smile onto her face and turned to accept the glass of brandy that Regina had just poured for her. She took the glass while trying to make her voice sound casual. "I seem to still smell of your perfume. I guess I should change too and you know, probably shower", Emma cleared her throat before continuing, "anyway, you seem to wear this perfume a lot. What is it called?"

Regina stared into the half-full tumbler that was balanced between her hands. "La Petite Robe Noire. It's supposed to smell of dark cherries and a few other things. I believe apples are one of the minor notes. Fitting, wouldn't you say? I've worn it ever since it was created and I got a sample in a store."

Emma didn't reply at first as she was too busy worrying about the fact that she could have sworn that La Petite Robe Noire was the name of the perfume in her dream. She shook her head to herself, she must have heard the other woman mention it once and subconsciously remembered it.

She turned to Regina and gave her another forced smile. "It's really nice. Suits you!"

Regina looked at her seriously. "Are we really here to discuss my perfume?"

Emma sat up straighter and looked up at Regina. "No, no we are here to talk about us. Thank you for that by the way, thanks for agreeing to talk. And well… thank you for your revelations earlier. Both the secret that the potion made you tell me and then for what you said at the hospital. I see where you are coming from now."

Emma took a deep breath. From here on in she was going to be skating on thin ice. She choose her words carefully and then continued, "this was never about the fairy dust leading you to Robin or me being a woman or the risk of hurting Henry, was it? It was about you not daring to love this deeply, right?"

Regina had returned to staring into her tumbler. She took a dainty sip from it now before replying. "I suppose so. Well, it WAS about those things too. But they never overshadowed my feelings. Not even Robin…"

Emma interrupted her. "Thank god! Because I have spoken to Tinkerbell and I have thought a lot about that. And well… if I had been born then and was in the same realm as you, do you think the pixie dust might not have led you to me?"

Emma's voice rose a little as she continued, "you can't give up on us just because I wasn't there when some shady magic trick decided your future. I can love you better than he ever could, and it would be so damn sad if you missed out on what I can offer because of shiny dust!" Emma had gotten quite agitated and would probably have continued if Regina hadn't put a hand on her forearm to stop her.

"I know. That was what I was saying, Emma. What I admitted to at the hospital was true, Robin was just a way to try and cure myself of my feelings for you. Because I didn't think you could love me back and because I thought I would ruin it all and have my heart broken as usual. Life has stepped pretty hard on my heart and to be honest, the loss of you would be the last straw for it. That is not a good position to find myself in." Regina had been looking at Emma while speaking but now she reverted her gaze and her hand back to her brandy.

Emma took a large gulp from her own glass and swallowed it quickly while considering Regina's words. At some point Emma would have to inform her hostess that she wasn't a big fan of brandy. But for now she had more important things to say.

"I can see that. To be honest, I can't promise you that we will work out. I might in fact hurt you. But I will do everything in my power not to. I am in love with you too. I can't believe I didn't see it before. The signs were there, my life kept revolving around you and Henry and I felt so passionately about everything you did or said. And then there was the constant objectifying of your… um… certain physical attributes." Emma took another swig of brandy to hide her embarrassment.

Regina gave a soft chuckle and beamed a smile that lit up her entire face. "So I wasn't imagining it. You have in fact been staring at my behind," she said while still smiling happily.

Emma laughed too. "That obvious, huh? Well it is a work of art, Madame Mayor, you have to admit that. Not to mention the rest of you!"

Regina laughed again but didn't reply. Emma felt that she was doing ok so far and urged herself on.

"Yeah, so… As I was saying, I am in love with you too. And to be honest, I would think it was a horrible waste if we went through that whole potion thing without some kind of good outcome. I mean Belle and Gold might have split up by now, who knows? Someone should have a happy ending. Why not you and me this time? Isn't that worth the risk?" Emma punctuated her words with her best puppy eyes and stared deep into the brunette's brown eyes.

Regina sighed. "Really, Miss Swan. The cute puppy dog eyes? Ha! Well, I wish I could say that I was able to steel myself against them but for some strange reason I'm not."

Emma smiled while her mind whirled to come up with more arguments. She figured she was going to talk about the benefits of having his two moms together for Henry next but she didn't have a chance to say anything else.

Regina drained her glass in one long drink and stood up. "I'm very tired. I am going to go upstairs and put my sleepwear on. Feel free to accompany me and talk to me while I dress. After all, it's nothing that you haven't seen before, is it?"

Emma realised that her mouth was open and quickly closed it. As Regina started to walk up the stairs Emma practically inhaled the last of her brandy and hurried after the brunette. Emma didn't know if it was her overheated imagination or if Regina was actually swaying her hips a little extra as she walked up the stairs.


	20. Chapter 20

When upstairs and in the bedroom, Regina lifted her pillow and brought out a set of perfectly folded grey silk pyjamas. Emma was standing just inside the door, shifting her weight from one foot to the other and frowning slightly.

She remembered that she was still supposed to be convincing Regina. "So, uh. Yeah, you and me. Well, Henry will be happy that we are together. And it will be easier for him if we one day live together. He won't have to keep dragging stuff between two places, I mean."

Regina nodded with a barely hidden smirk as she put the pyjamas on the bed and started to unzip her black dress. Emma once again remembered her dream and before she had time to think about it she rushed over to help Regina with the zip.

She slowly pulled it down as she tried to focus on speaking. "Right, um. So, yeah, Good for Henry. It will be good for the town as well, I think. They know that we can keep each other in check and balance each other out. You'll help me put down real roots so I don't get scared and take off. And I'll keep you from... you know... going all crazypants and cursing everyone."

Regina laughed heartily. "Going all crazypants? Is that how you refer to me being so twisted by heartbreak and my mother's warped ambition that I destroyed the happy endings of most of the people in my land?"

Emma had drawn the zip all the way down now but was resting her hand on the zip still, simply because her knuckles were touching the warm skin of Regina's back. She licked her dry lips and tried to think of a reply.

"No, that was a stupid way of putting it. Sorry. I'm just distracted by the fact that you are the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. Anyway, you didn't destroy their happy endings. Most of them are quite happy now. And they'll be even happier when they know that you are safely in a good relationship and won't be casting any more curses," Emma finished and reluctantly let go of the zip and the blissful skin contact.

Regina turned around and she wasn't smiling anymore. Her face looked almost tentative. "You think I'm beautiful? Don't you mean sexy? Or attractive?"

"No. No, I mean beautiful. Like the sea or a sunset. But you know, much, much, much more beautiful. Well, you're sexy too of course. I can tell because I'm already soaked and you haven't even taken that dress off yet." Emma looked over Regina's body appreciatively and then returned her gaze to the brown eyes that were now so full of warmth.

And then there it was again, that Regina-Mills-smile which caused Emma's knees to wobble and her stomach to fill with hyperactive butterflies. Nothing made Emma more proud than when she did something to impress Regina or even better, to make her reward Emma with one of those stunning smiles.

Regina easily shrugged out of her dress. "You know, I think you have made a lot of valid points tonight. The two ones I want to delve further into right now is that you pointed out downstairs that you need to get out of those clothes and secondly the recent mention of you being soaked somewhere. Let's start with the clothing situation."

Regina moved close to Emma and kneeled in front of her and started to unlace the blonde's high boots. Emma reminded herself to close her mouth once again as she saw Mayor Regina Mills kneeling in front of her wearing only black lace underwear. Regina smiled a wolfish smile at Emma which made the blonde feel dizzy. Probably because all the blood had left her head to rush to her clit.

When the boots were unlaced and Emma had stepped out of them, Regina undid the top button on Emma's tight jeans and then reached forward to grab the zip between her teeth and slowly pull it down while still looking straight into Emma's eyes. The blonde groaned as Regina let go of the zip and smiled even bigger.

Emma was beyond caution now. That last stunt of Regina's had made her lose control. But she didn't feel like she had earlier that day, she didn't feel the animal urgency and the fury-tinted passion. The passion she did feel was muddled with the loving sensations that had flooded her when she heard Regina confess her feelings further at the hospital. As much as her libido was melting in Regina's warm hands, so was her heart.

She took Regina's hands and pulled her up to kiss her. The kiss started gently but it was only a few heartbeats until their tongues met in their open mouths. Neither of them could help moaning with pleasure.

As they kissed Emma tried to get her jeans off but it was hard with the wonderful distraction of Regina's hungry mouth. After a while she tore herself away from the kiss and panted, "for fuck's sake, Regina. Get all the clothes off now!" The brunette didn't hesitate a second but just waived her hand and poof, they were both naked again. Emma groaned and threw herself at Regina with such force that they fell backwards unto Regina's bed.

They slipped a bit as Regina had landed on her silk pyjamas and she giggled. Emma stopped as she couldn't remember ever hearing the dignified woman giggle. It was a lovely sound and it filled her blood with fizzy bubbles of joy. Still smiling she began to kiss Regina while manoeuvring further up the bed.

Her hands were roaming all over Regina's lovely body, she was taking her time now. As she stole her mouth away from Regina's and started to kiss her shoulder she mumbled in between kisses "say something." Regina had her eyes closed and was biting her lip from the delicious feel of the kisses but she groaned "say something? Like what?"

Emma kept kissing down Regina's arm. "Anything. I love hearing your voice. I have ever since the first time I spoke to you on the phone and was dumbstruck by the way your voice sounds." Regina's hands were caressing Emma's upper back and one hand started to stroke the now tousled blonde locks. "How does my voice sound," Regina asked while moaning quietly.

"It sounds rich, warm and slightly dark. Very sexy and very lavish. Like chocolate. Like melted chocolate or chocolate ganache." Emma stopped kissing her lovers arm after her last words and looked at Regina. "You know I never thought about that before. Your eyes are the colour of chocolate and your voice sounds like chocolate sauce. You are addictive, a pick-me-up and dangerous if overdosed on. You are basically chocolate!"

The brunette looked at the woman on top of her with an amused expression. "Do you know what's funny? When we made love earlier today I looked at your creamy skin and peach-coloured areolas and thought you were like peaches and cream." Emma smiled back at her and quipped, "well, aren't we just two tasty treats then?" Then she leaned over and blew a raspberry on Regina's neck.

Regina laughed and then forced herself to look seriously at Emma. "Now Sheriff, I don't want you to get carried away. I'm not some easy teenage girl you have lured into a bus shelter to make-out. I am the Mayor of Storybrooke, a former queen and the mother of your son. You will treat me with respect and dignity and most of all… you will use your lovely mouth to clean up the mess you have created between my thighs."

Emma grinned happily at her. "Yes, Madame Mayor. It will be my pleasure!"

* * *

><p>After four different sexual positions, plenty of wet fingers, thighs and tongues, five orgasms (three of Regina's and two of Emma's) and hundreds of whispered affections between heartfelt moans and several naughty shouts, only interrupted to not wake Henry, they finally collapsed. Regina ended up on top of Emma, slowly sliding the two slightly curled fingers out of Emma that she had just used to bring the younger woman to her second powerful orgasm.<p>

They were both trying to smile to show their utter happiness and relief but both were so exhausted that even smiling took willpower. Emma whispered "I love you, but I have to sleep now. Goodnight gorgeous." Regina stroked the sweat-drenched strands of hair away from the younger woman's face and replied: "I love you too. Thank you for making me admit it and thank you for tonight. Goodnight my angel."

Regina laid her head down on Emma's chest and listened to her heartbeats and breaths. After a while Emma's breaths came slower and slower until Regina was convinced that the blonde bombshell underneath her was fast asleep. Regina found herself looking at the younger woman in complete awe and confusion.

Regina had on quite a few times in her life felt that she belonged to someone against her will, be that physical or not. The worst case when it came to the physical side had been Leopold, who luckily wasn't that interested in sex with Regina since he was still in love with his dead wife, but the old man did feel that a monthly roll in the marital hay was needed to show that he was trying to procure an heir.

It was awkward and painful and a reminder to Regina that her body didn't belong to herself, it had belonged to her parents and now they, mainly her mother of course, had given it to Leopold to use as he wished. That had taught Regina that her body was just an object and this was how she had used it, showing it off in her evil queen clothes or in her power suits to achieve her goals. It was nothing more than a physical thing that Regina had to use like a tool to keep others from using it their way.

But now something had changed. The way Emma had touched her and the way Emma had made her feel had made Regina change her view on not only her own body but also Emma's. A body wasn't something to be used, it was a physical representation of a person's soul and heart and should be honoured thereafter. Emma's body was the image of Emma's heart and therefore so very precious.

As she caressed Emma's warm, pale skin gently she saw a smile forming on the sleeping blonde's lips. Regina felt like she could spend a lifetime touching, pleasuring and watching the creature beneath her. It felt sacred, almost like praying. Emma and their love was to be as close to a religion as Regina had ever had.

With the gentlest of fingers she touched Emma's side and tenderly slid her fingers down towards her belly. She could see the faintest of stretch marks there and smiled. Henry. These were the signs that her lover wore of having given Regina her son. Regina couldn't help leaning down and softly kissing the barely visible marks. Emma sighed happily in her sleep. They were a family now and no one was ever going to take Regina's family away from her. She finally had her happy ending, they all did.

The End.


End file.
